THE
BIG BUBBLE
PART FOUR OF THE MOLE TRILOGY
Album
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Since the Mole Trilogy had very nearly destroyed the Residents from the inside, it seemed inconceivable that in 1985 the Residents announced they would be expanding the project to six albums. The odd-numbered LPs would tell the story of the Mole/Chub culture clash, while the evens would portray the music behind these episodes. The new release, The Big Bubble, was actually the fourth installment, but is liner notes did fill us in on the goings-on of Part Three.
Decades after their war, the Chubs and Mohelmots ("Moles") lived in stalemate, and had even intermarried to produce "Cross" children. However, the Moles had begun a new "Zinkenite" movement to create a Mohelmot nation. Their leader was actually a Cross named Kula Bocca, who discovered a local band he could sell as spokesmen for the Zinkenites. This band, the Big Buggle, united the cause like never before, especially when Kula Bocca had their singer arrsted to provoke sympathy for the movement. Afterward, he convinced Black Shroud Records (run by a Chub) to release the Big Bubble's self-titled album. That album serves as Part Four of the Mole Trilogy.
The Big Bubble generated the most decisively mixed reviews of the Residents' career: it tied (with Not Available) for "Weirdest Album" in a UWEB poll, but was a sizeable hit in Japan, launching the Residents' 13th Anniversary tour.
Whether the schism of their fans finally convinced the Residents to abandon the project s unclear; however, after playing part of The Big Bubble in the "13th Anniversary Show," they have never returned to the Moles' saga again.
RATING: 8
Well. I certainly have no argument for UWEB when they call this the weirdest Residents album. It is that, by ten miles. It's no coincidence that it's also their most difficult, either, both in concept and in execution. Near as I can tell, the "political anthems" are obvious, and the strange chant-ish ones (like "Hop A Little" and "Gotta Gotta get") are the Mole/Chub equivalent of bubblegum (Big Bubble, get it?)...fluff to attract the kiddies, then throwing propaganda at them—a stirring combination. (Unless I'm wrong and it's just all Mole language...)
And how in the HELL is this impenetrable, horribly harsh sound "bubblegum"? Well, if you listen carefully, it's fusion of Mole and Chub music (think "God of Darkness" meets "Song of the Wild," both from Tunes). And some of the nonsense chant-y stuff is pretty subtle rhetoric too—think of the "Big Bubble" (the song lyric, not the album) as a symbol for Mole culture, yes? Pretty thought-provoking: how powerful might rock & roll have been if "Rama Lama Ding Dong" or "Da Doo Ron Ron" had had political subtexts?
The point I'm trying to make here is that there is a wealth of ideas that make this a compelling listen, despite its being a hideosly ugly, almost unlistenable listen. The funny thing about it, though, is that once you accept the idea that it's less the Residents than the Residents assuming the persona of The Big Bubble, it starts sounding Residential. Then you will find a strange beauty in the keyboard drones, the extensive piano (check out "Kula Bocca Says So," a pretty song even among the harshness), and the stinging guitar ("Cry for the Fire" is great too). It just takes the longest to digest this one: in other words, don't even THINK about buying this first (confidential to Tom Horan: Oops).
Most Residents fans seem to hate The Big Bubble. I say, work through it. It's quite frustrating, but ultimately quite rewarding.
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