Where Are Your Dogs? Show Us Your Ugly!
SANTA DOG '92
Special Release/Single
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Where Are Your Dogs? Show Us Your Ugly! |
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Like its 1988 predecessor, Santa Dog '92 was distributed to all UWEB members free of charge at Christmastime, 1992. Unfortunately, the circumstances behind this "Santa Dog" were less pleasant than '88. Shortly after its release, Uncle Willie disbanded UWEB, feeling that his presence had become a handicap to the Residents' art. Although he did squeeze out one more disc (an anthology of the late Snakefinger) before the end, Santa Dog '92 was UWEB's last Residents release.
This CD consisted of one 13-minute track, "Where Are Your Dogs? Show Us Your Ugly!" It told the story of a laboratory dog given plastic surgery and human growth hormone before escaping on Christmas Day. Despite some musical references, the song was not a direct cover of "Fire" from the 1972 release.
RATING: 5
I didn't want to give this a 5. I looked very, very hard for reasons to give it a 6. I found two or three good points.
First, while our boys don't do "Fire" this time out, (I THINK) they do "Explosion," side 3 of Santa Dog. The not-really-a-melody here is pretty close to that snarling, droning guitar in "Explosion." the Residents get a few points for the change-up.
Second, some of the trimmings are pretty cool. I like the space noises and the drums, and while the synthesized-orchestra blasts ain't exactly cutting-edge for 1992, they sound good here anyway.
Third, I truly do love the "bing-bing-bing, bong-bong-bong" parts, especially the end ("bing-bing-bing, bong-bong-bong, show us your ugly!"). The mood seems to lift there, and the keyboards play really pretty chords under the vocal.
That leaves eleven minutes that are boring as Hell. Story and music both plod along for forever, with quick snippets of "Fire" cutting in to remind us, in case we forgot in all the excitement, that this is "Santa Dog." The singer's voice is processed into an appropriately menacing growl...that gets old fast. And, since I love dogs, the sound of the whimpering, wounded puppy they keep using just makes me wince.
Does this shed light on the Residents' evolution, circa 1992? Maybe. I'm not sure. I do know that it's far and away my least favorite "Santa Dog." In my humble opinion, it has neither presents nor presence in the future.