umm...

RQ: Does anyone else think Pinkerton is a concept album? I read someone saying it was about breaking up with a lesbian girlfriend, but I think they're just looking for connections between songs that aren't there.

It's very, very loosely based on the Puccini opera Madama Butterfly, but it's applied so loosely that one need not pay attention to it, if you ask me. Never heard the interpretation about breaking up with a lesbian girlfriend, though.

I think that theory rests solely in "Pink Triangle".

Yeah, that would make the most sense. It's also where Rivers made the greatest deviation from Puccini's opera, but that's a different story.

I'm interested in hearing more about how Pinkerton is related to Puccini's opera. any links?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Rocket2Russia

umm...

RQ: Does anyone else think Pinkerton is a concept album? I read someone saying it was about breaking up with a lesbian girlfriend, but I think they're just looking for connections between songs that aren't there.

---

it's a concept in the fact that it follows the core idea of being older than you actually are ("The Good Life") and the mistakes you make because of it ("Tired of Sex", "Butterfly") and how separated you feel from the "crowd" ("Across the Sea")

see Dog Problems by The Format for similar themes, more relating to heartbreak



Pinkerton never came to me as a cohesive story but you could make an argument for it

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Rocket2Russia

I'm interested in hearing more about how Pinkerton is related to Puccini's opera. any links?

---

There really aren't any reviews of the album I saw that covered the topic well, but here's the plot synopsis of Madama Butterfly as given by New York's Metropolitan Opera: http://www.metoperafamily.org/metope...psis.aspx?id=8

As much as it's not reliable on a lot of things, Wikipedia actually has a pretty good synopsis, too: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madama_Butterfly

Like I said, it's a very loose adaptation of it, especially the third act of the play, which really doesn't have an equivalent on the album. The closest direct connections are the album's title (Pinkerton is also the name of the male lead of the opera), the closing track ("Butterfly," Madama Butterfly, get it?), and the one reference to Cio-Cio-San (the female lead) in "El Scorcho." To a lesser extent, all the times Rivers mentions Japan are a nod to the opera as well.

When you get right down to it, Pinkerton and Puccini share some general themes (like Lameboy said, disillusionment is a big one), but it's still a very loose adaptation.

Speaking of Weezer, anyone remember MeleeMan?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by afterstasis

It takes a very special Vice article to draw me in.

---

It takes a special level of being KVLT to be decked out in leather while living in a tropical country near the equator. Hope this sparks the beginning of "African Tribal Cowboy Doomsday Metal". :p

Heads up to anyone whos writing reviews and didnt know you could but you can edit your profile/contributor page to however you see fit. http://www.thegorgon.com/?page_id=2 is mine. You can borrow the format or do whatever you want. Again, I dont care ;o