ONO
Yes, I’m a Witch
Astralwerks
· Oh Yoko! With the help of The Faming Lips, Peaches and Cat Power, Ms. Ono is still a strange bird.
In recent years maturing muses of the ’60s like Marianne Faithful and Nancy Sinatra have traded in their Mick Jaggers and Lee Hazelwoods for the likes of PJ Harvey and Morrissey (respectively) in an attempt to capitalize on their lasting impact on alternative music. While the aforementioned grande dames tapped their younger admirers to write and perform on their albums, enduring provocateur Yoko Ono decided to put a different spin on the duets album. In true Ono style, Yes, I’m a Witch, is more art project than standard collaboration, with college-rock types like The Flaming Lips, Cat Power and Peaches taking raw vocal tracks from Ono’s back catalogue and constructing new backdrops.
Much of the disc is dominated by expected beat-laden tracks, but it’s the artists who stray from the obvious remix style that have the most success. Slower numbers like Porcupine Tree’s take on "Death of Samantha" or The Polyphonic Spree’s uplifting "You and I" are far more compelling than Le Tigre’s forced "Sisters O Sisters" or DJ Spooky’s "Rising." As for Ono… well, she’s still Yoko Ono and all the indie rock dance beats in the world aren’t going to change her distinctively challenging vocal style, which makes Yes, I’m a Witch more interesting than enjoyable. But as she sings in the title track, "My voice speaks truth, I don’t fit in your ways… I’m gonna stick around for a while."
3/5
ELIZABETH CHORNEY-BOOTH
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