User:AAE/Reviewing "Christian and the Hedgehog Boys"
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Chris is arguably the most controversial outsider artist in Internet history. She came of age during a perfect storm of digital development, marked by cheap/free Internet hosting and accessible recording technology. Anyone can publish a webcomic, broadcast themselves on YouTube, or record an album.
Chris's first album is perhaps the rawest look one could get into her college-aged mind. This article will be a review of this defining piece of Christorical art.
Sonics
It's often claimed that modern music technology negates the need for talent and practice. The endless barrage of mediocre albums on the Internet disproves that myth – but Chris doesn't even bother with the most basic of modern recording technology. In fact, this first album was recorded on a cassette tape, in one take, with one microphone. She didn't use any fancy synthesizers – just a boom box loaded with tracks from the late 90s. She didn't bother with Auto-Tune, compression, or even de-noise (I think she left her fan on when she was recording). I wouldn't be surprised if she thinks this method of recording is more authentic, much as she does with her "hand-drawn art." However, it definitely adds to the aesthetic.
The distortion created by (1) whatever boombox Chris used to play the original tracks, (2) the air, (3) whatever crappy microphone Chris was using with her tape recorder, and (4) the tape itself is perhaps the most noticeable aspect of this album. The bass and treble are nearly absent, and the midrange tends to clip.
The sampled songs seem to be varied in intensity (from the soft ballad of BFF's to the fast-paced J-rock of Sonichu Zip), but ultimately reflect Chris's eclectic music taste. Nearly all of the songs were released in the late 90s.
It's unclear whether Chris is incapable of varying the pitch of her voice or is simply trying to drown out the original singers. It's also unclear why Chris didn't just grab some MIDI files or karaoke CDs. But Chris is Chris, and we won't get ahead of ourselves.
Messages
This album was recorded in 2003, when Chris was 21 years old. Her Love Quest arguably began on her 21st birthday,