CD Liner Notes
The Tunes of Two Cities
The Tunes of Two Cities is the second part of The Residents' Mole Trilogy which began with Mark of the Mole. While the first part is an elaborately told story of political and social struggle, Two Cities is a documentation of the music of these two cultures as they were before fate threw them into turmoil
The tracks on this disc alternate between societies. First one culture... then the other... making its point, not just by what is said... but by the listener's willingness to understand the globe-wrenching power of "difference".
CD Liner Notes
Intermission
In 1982 and 83 The Residents took The Mole Show on the road. The highly acclaimed work was offset by opening, closing, and intermission music that had been recorded by The Residents especially for the presentation. The music was eventually released on vinyl as Intermission. In adding Intermission here to Mark of the Mole, a sense of reflective "commenting" follows the bleak Mole tragedy. For those of you with a sense of more intergration between these two independent recordings, try programing your CD player with selection 7 first, followed by selection 1-3. Then stick in 8, 9, and 10, and follow those with 4, 5, and 6. Finally, cap it all of with selection 11.
LP Liner notes
The Big Bubble
In the fall of 1981 The Residents released Mark of the Mole. This first record of the Mole Trilogy laid out the basic story line for the first two parts of the story. One, the Hole-Workers battle against the ravages of nature in the form of a storm that destroys their homes; and two, their resulting conflict with a neighboring culture that is very different from their own. The second part of the triogy was released in spring of 1982. It featured examples of the music of both the Chub and the Mole cultures so as to more clearly illustrate the difference between these two societal forces. The remainder of 1982 and all of 1983 was spent touring a large scale musical/visual presentation of these two albums that was known as The Mole Show. Upon returning from the European part of the tour, The Residents rested briefly and threw themselves into the job of completing the story. Part three of the trilogy picked up on the story several decades after the great war. The survivors of the two cultures lived side-by-side in uneasy peace. The war had not resulted in any clear winner, but time had promoted those who had the appropriate appetite for power, and the Chubs were famous for their various appetites.
Many Moles and Chubs had blended socially so mixed marriages were common. Their offspring were refered to as "Cross". In responce to this a "Zinkenite" movement by traditional Moles, or "Mohelmot", had surfaced to encourage the establishment of a new Mohelmot nation. Surprisingly, many of the officials of the Zinkenites were "Cross", as though the Chub genes had brought out a new aggression to the Mohelmot sense. One such official was a charismatic second generation cross named Kula Bocca.
Kula Bocca knew that if the Zinkenites were to succeed in reestablishing their society, they needed the energy, passion, and, above all, naivete of youth. He hired a local band to play for a rally at Elmwurst, and, although he did not think they were very good, the band immediately captured the heart of the crowd with a single song, "Cry for the Fire". The song even had a section that was sung in the original language of the Mohelmot which had been outlawed since the war. Few in the audience could understand what the singer was saying, but everyone immediately grasped that a deep link was being established with their past.
Kula Bocca could see the power that this band, "The Big Bubble", had on the public. At a later rally he arranged for the singer of the band to be "arrested" to stir up sympathy for the Zinkenites, and then he contacted Frinky DuVall of Black Shroud Records concerning The Bubble. Black Shroud supported the Zinkenites even though Mr. DuVall was a Chub, and agreed to release an album for the band.
So now The Residents proudly present Part Four of the Mole Trilogy... the Black Shroud album by the band that is shaking a nation... THE BIG BUBBLE.
Tne Liner Notes for the album on the album
Rarely in the history of popular music has a meteoric rise been seen equal to that of the band whose first album you are currently holding in your hands. Less than two years ago Ramsey, Paul, Alex and Frank started getting together in their Leone family garage to "play around" with some tunes that Ramsey and Frank had been writing together. One of these songs was a catchy riff named "The Big Bubble".
On their own the foursome raised enough money to release a single of "The Big Bubble" and the tune became an instant regional hit. However, since they had never taken a name for their band, and the lable of their single only read "Big Bubble", the name of the song was soon forced upon them as the name of the band as well.
Not until the political rally of Elmwurst did the band gain national prominence. Following a speech by Zinkenite spokesman, Kula Bocca, the band premiered a new composition, "Cry for the Fire". Twenty thousand people came to their feet, interlocked arms, and listened in stunned silence as "The Big Bubble" sang to the people in the ancient tongue of the Mohelmot, forbidden since the war.
"Cry for the Fire" became the anthem of the Zinkenites. In November at the Casema rally, Ramsey was arrested for singing in Mohelmot. The resulting riot and public outcry forced his release three days later.
At that time, Frankie DuVall, president of Black Shroud Records, called on the "Bubble" and stated that he was ready to back the group on an album that would include the Mohelmot vocals, the first time that the Mohelmot language had ever been recorded.
So here it is. The boys have re-recorded their first hit "The Big Bubble" (note the altered lyrics on this version), as well as ten other tunes, six of which use the Mohelmot speech including the controversial Zinkenite anthem "Cry for the Fire".>br>
Hope you dig it.
Black Shroud Records