Antony & The Johnsons???

cjs19

They just won the Mercury prize, (even though they arent really British only Antony is) but what are your opinions on this group? They have a couple of albums but have only come to my attention recently. I cant decide whether this is new and even genius, or weird and disturbing, though both options demand notification. Haunting is a word that springs to mind and nihilistic traits seem to run in the lyrics, but there is something I cant quite put my finger on here, it cant be that Antony's just plain strange, I couldnt care less, but that voice is eerie, and ethereal, not in an Enya way, but an earthy, soulful, groan. Every emotion can be heard in that voice, or is he just a singer who shouldnt really be a singer? He has commendation from Lou Reed and that cant be a bad thing. Any thoughts or comments?

parker larkin

I firmly believe that Antony and the Johnstons is either something you are into or you aren't. That first listen either completely breaks your heart, or you just want to turn it off. I fall into the former category and find the whole A&tJs experience completely devastating and uplifting at the same time. It is a very emotional response to very emotional music.

John

It really is a love or hate experience. I can understand why someone wouldn't like him. However I think he is one of the most original and talented artists to appear in a long time. The new album is fantastic, I keep meaning to buy his first album and track down the couple of EPs he's done. And of course I'll be at the gig in November.