We Made a Comic Book Concept Album, Here's the Liner Notes in Pretentious Detail
SECRET INFINITY from 12 Valentines is on Bandcamp & the streamers
I spent much of this year making an indie album with my musically-talented pals under the collective name 12 Valentines. The songs could be described as retropop in the 80s-90s vein, with synthwave, shoegaze, emo flavors, a flirtation with disco. Some Asian American angst pervades, and while I am an ace-leaning dude, several tracks could be called sapphic pop, with queer storylines voiced by several women vocalists. Most of the songs are sung by a couple women, it turns out, although ‘twas not by design, there’s just one tune with a dude singer, who is Max of Marrower voicing the Bane part of Scandal & Bane. (I’m not Korean either, altho the group takes its name from a cool South Korean thing.) Also, it’s a comic book-themed concept album. You don’t gotta be a comics nerd to grok it, tho. The idea was to use the magic vocabulary of Marvel/DC books and superhero tropes as catchy lyrics on the trusty song topics: love, loneliness, pondering the hereafter.
With the intent to offer disambiguating context, here are some notes on the individual songs:
Someone?
This is a song from the days when I ran an indie rock musical theater company with Gaby Alter. The song always had something touching about it, I thought it merited a new recording. (The theater company was called ERP, short for Emerald Rain Productions, for some goofy reason.) The hook speaks to the compelling…hook of the superhero fantasy — the idea that when you’re in deep trouble there’s someone who cares enough to come and extract you. Sung by Joey Slater and Vic Ess. Outro quote from the Buggles song, Vic reproduces the iconic line with heartpiercing fidelity, an excellent mimic of radio singing styles she is.
Aurora
Inspired by the recent Brat Girl Summer, a synth-pop ditty imagining affairs of the heart with the perspective of the Marvel hero Aurora, she of the superspeed and tropey sparkle powers. At the epiphanal suggestion by Dale Stewart, the chorus borrows a bit from 1963’s The Lonely Surfer by Jack Nitzche. Another 80s song quote outro, because who are we kidding?
Birds and Catlady
A neo-disco number referencing the Batfamily-associated bizarre love triangle of Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman/Lady (I guess that happens mainly in the Harley Quinn animated show, huh), and Rocksteady Games’ Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League. Look, in my value system, it’s a really important video game. Mzmo wanted to do a disco-funk Dua Lipa-ish track. It was early in the summer, Veep Vance’s “catlady” rant was buzzing around. Oh, well. Nyaradzo takes the Poison Ivy POV, Mariah channels Catwoman. Victoria’s Lana del Rey interpolation is another excellent thing that happens.
9000 Chances
A breakup song related to the 2024 POTUS election. I had a short tune for the Harris / Walz moment that meshed with this ‘60s-style gal group song. And then the result that happened, happened, and here’s the revamped song which Vic and Nyaradzo do a really nice job on. This version isn’t on the streamers, it’s only on the Bandcamp album.
Hand Eye
Composed with Gaby, about the moment of gaining superhuman abilities from the magic amulet or radioactive goo or whathaveyou. Sung with verve by Nyaradzo and Jessica. Probably meant to go with a dance number in a full-on musical, probably there would be a lot of jumping.
Scandal & Bane
I had a nasty case of COVID in the first month of the year. One night while feeling mighty awful I read a TPB of DC’s Secret Six by Gail Simone and Nicola Scott. Beset with feverish pukey misery, this one scene between Bane and Scandal Savage struck me so hard. In essence, Scandal helps Bane get through his addiction-withdrawal symptoms with comfort and companionship. Also, there are so many drug songs about terrible outcomes, couldn’t we have one where the person, y’know, kicks the habit and wins? That does happen. Also, I thought “Scandal and Bane” had a nice ring to it as a song title, a la "Leather and Lace,” “Crimson and Clover.” Max and Victoria sing, Mzmo plays and arranges.
Silk Sense
If Cindy Moon a.k.a. Silk the Asian American Spider-Person in the Marvel Universe had a theme song I figured it’d be kind of emogoth/curled-in-ball-listening-to-The-Cure-ish. Also references Shelob in the Middle-Earth video games, which are so fun. Ayrs does the vocal with spooky-kewl spider-moodiness.
Costume Party
Angst-filled party song that takes place in the Peanuts universe, in my head canon. In keeping with our outro quotes from much famouser songs, Vic does a section of the Supremes’ “Come See About Me” at the end. Vic is a very delightful and versatile lead singer, I surely do appreciate her skill at inhabiting different pop idioms.
Afterworld X
Another old ERP tune by Gaby and I. I extended the lyric to allude to the X-Men, who know all about that dying and reincarnating thing. It’s been a hard time of people passing on, I mean when is it not, but these past several years in particular. Huan Hua of Gentle Brontosaurus and Miscellaneous Owl sings the lovely vocal with herself.
Superpowerless
A live recording of an ERP performance from deep in the Nineties. Gaby wrote this song as part of our underground musical Vapor Tales (not the Rush album) which marked the start of my confusion of comic book and pop musical formats.
November Stanza / 9000 Chances
The version of my Kamala Harris song that integrates 9000 Chances and her actual speaking at the 2024 Democratic National Convention. I dunno if it’s fair use, DNC feel free to @ me if it’s a big deal.
Concept albums are a thing this season, did you hear? There was Gaga's HARLEQUIN for the Joker sequel. Lin-Manuel Miranda released WARRIORS with Eisa Davis, Nas, Lauryn Hill, and pretty much everybody. Halsey's THE GREAT IMPERSONATOR is a cool concept where she interpolates familiar song-forms from different eras.
The full version of the album is at Bandcamp, where you can also acquire all our individual releases. The leaner version of the album is on the streamers, where of course I’d love if you’d follow and like and playlist our stuff for the visibility. But being real, Spootify is a scam, and the Bandcamp version has funny skits with Jessika and Keith and the aforementioned album-only track and a musicalized Green Lantern oath and a karaoke video. I’m really pleased and grateful for how it came together, and would love if these songs which I hold close to my heart could find some audience.