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Lights Out Zoltar!

by Gemma Ray

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  • Record/Vinyl + Digital Album

    RSD 2020 reissue, pink vinyl, new art, ltd to 500 with download card with extra bits

    Includes unlimited streaming of Lights Out Zoltar! via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    ships out within 4 days
    edition of 500 
    Purchasable with gift card

      £18.99 GBP or more 

     

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      €6.99 EUR

     

1.
A long, long time ago (but not so long ago though…) Days went slow but the weeks flew fast, flying past and calling us – hurry up! Some people push and shove, other ones aren’t tough enough Chewing things over and over inside Then down that shute they slide – by the wayside It’s like driving 100 MPH in second gear Jumped through one too many hoops to prove you shoot not in cold blood but fear This place is so austere, but I feel safe in here Feels like a little prison in my mind No blinds to draw down when the dark decides It’s like driving 100 MPH in second gear Jumped through one too many hoops to prove you shoot not in cold blood but fear Rain’s coming down thick and fast Pressed up against the glass The cold precision of the wipers Do nothing to make our journey brighter
2.
Snuck A Peak 03:59
Unraveling shadows, the touch of tumbling silk Falling forbidden now It feels…..and it feels.. You’ll open you’re into nothing now You’ll open up your arms and no-one’ll come No-one’ll come runnin to you Tip-toed and arched over A crescent shaped ache Breaking open and over Again…and again You’ll open you’re into nothing now You’ll open up your arms and no-one’ll come No-one’ll come runnin to you
3.
Tough Love 02:39
Treat me kind in the morning Treat me kind in the evening Bone china cup and saucer Quivers round the bones of my fingers Tough Love Hey you - yeah in your youth You were a white dove, I wore a boxing glove With brown hair and fair skin So beautiful, and keeping it all in Tough Love Don’t be confused or short fused Cos there are many things little girl you did not choose A montage, C’est moi, c’est moi! Que-est ce je ne pas – La femme dans le old blue car…
4.
Lowering your eyes, rewinding the sunrise Looking for something, searching for nothing Grows darker by the hour, Closing up like the fist of a flower Hour by hour by hour Closing up like a flower Looking at the moon, that you’re looking at too Staring at the same thing with a galaxy in-between Grows darker by the hour, Closing up like the fist of a flower Hour by hour by hour Closing up like a flower
5.
1952 (free) 03:41
Honey where have you been? You’re two shades short of green… I’ve been drinking Cuba-Libras in the street Well we’ve been here before, picking pennies off the floor I’ve been calling – you don’t answer the phone anymore I’ll break every bone in you Babe I’ve been dying to Ever since 1952 In a bar by the sea in the middle of a dream S’when your drunken treasure eyes sunk into mine Those omega 3 lips, approaching like enemy ships The coup de grace, Non! Por favor! Permisson Senoir! I’m barefoot, broken and bruised Well I’m through with following you Been waiting for you to Ever since 1952 I’ve waited a long time for them to let me out of here And if those bullets come rattling Out your mouth I’ll grit my teeth and grin and bear it Cos I know you’re like me – sinking desperately Arms flailing, were they waving at me? I’m barefoot, broken and blue Well I’m thru with following you Been aching for you to – Ever since 1952
6.
Gimme a rope cos I’m falling Long or short, thick or thin So many years I been calling Trying to stop the evenings drawing in You keep it rolling, rolling… Gimme a rope cos I’m sinking A singular rose in a stream This undercurrent I am caught in Trying steer my soul into the sea No-one’s coming to save you And no-one’ll come to save me Everyone’s running around lately Trying to chase the devil out to sea You keep it rolling, rolling You got me in a Death Roll!
7.
Goody Hoo 03:15
Goody Hoo, the night’s upon you, moonlight lays lazy across your face in a silvery glaze. Your eyes are quick but stationary; feathers are thick with oils and excess – stretching through blue simmering shivers, cool iridescent quivers. Who are you to raise a question? Tight tree bark claws grip onto anything that dares to blink, your dissidence will see no jury, so eloquent your fury never shows - flows to the blue simmering shivers, cool iridescent quivers.
8.
No Water 03:27
Got blood on my feet Mudskippers at my heels No man or machine Has ever seen anything this real No water No water here No shelter from the sun No hello gonna come from anyone Oh been remembering the feel of your skin on mine Been remembering anything to reach the end of this line No water, No water here Oh! If you were the one then I know I would see you Crouching in the bushes with the sleep still in your eyes If you were the one then I’d never believe you were standing in a tree-trunk with those Animal Eyes This treacherous route Confuses and convolutes Like a feverish memory Oh Lord! I really thought you came to me No water, No water here Oh! If you were the one then I know I would see you Crouching in the bushes with the sleep still in your eyes If you were the one then I’d never believe you were standing in a tree-trunk with those Animal Eyes Oh no.
9.
Lord knows they tried to dig me a river And they tried to etch out a stream But the veins of my arm runs deeper than those preachers could ever dream And they tried to build me a mountain With the earth they dug up and cast aside And they tried to put a flag upon my head – it’s funny they even tried God knows they tried to dig me a river
10.
Only one way to the top, but once you fall down you’ll never stop There’s a hole in the sky and a gap in the ground, 2 warning signs – eyes that follow you around Don’t call me, it only makes it worse Don’t call me a liar and a curse Don’t know if it’s day or night, don’t care whether it’s wrong or right Cos there ain’t no light gonna shine in here, ain’t no sun gonna feed my fear Don’t call me, it only makes it worse Don’t call me a liar and a curse Don’t call me – ah ah ah Don’t call me… Lone voice in the library speaks to nobody else but me 5’O Clock people retreat The silence screams a deafening defeat Don’t call me, it only makes it worse Don’t call me a liar and a curse Don’t call me – ah ah ah Don’t call me – ah ah ah Don’t call me – uh-ow-ouch Don’t call me.
11.
Something shifted it’s true – truer than the deep blue Like a shoe by the shore, hung your coat at the door I could tell by the stars, venus, mercury and mars There were warnings of vast stormy clouds racing past Something Inside had died. I could see in the sky, a small shape passing by unidentified – our worst enemies hide I could tell by the stars, they knew right where you are Like a slow motion blast she was left for the past
12.
So Do I 04:11
Every night under the rolling sky, I silhouette against the skyline But tonight is the night satellites are swallowed by the candlelight And with every inch that burns With every drop of hot wax that turns hard – So do I I drew a line, then I rubbed it out, for every time I heard the city shout I’d hold out, then I pout and I doubt I’d ever put the candle out And as all the towns black out As all of the drowners pass out from their share – So do I Oh I keep runnin’ to you (like lovers do)

about

"Wondrous. A true alternative to the wan psychadelic folk of today’s lady-pop troupe” – MOJO

“Blowing sugary femme-pop out of the water. Gemma Ray is untouchable” – NME

“By rights, Gemma Ray should be a household name. When stood next to her, Amy Winehouse is revealed to be, if not a charlatan, certainly pedestrian. This album is a rare treat indeed” – BBC

“An eerie aural kaleidoscope that conjures up thoughts of what an album by Mary Weiss of the Shangri-Las produced by David Lynch would have sounded like. Though it echoes with references to mid-'60s melodramatic pop, it's of the moment and a delight.” – Wall Street Journal

“I recently saw Gemma Ray in concert and was really impressed by her unique blend of song-writing, vocals and musicianship. Not to be missed!” – Jimmy Page, London 2009.

“Her aesthetic may be retro, but the tough, moody perspective she brings to vintage song structures feels fresh and ultra modern” – Bust

“Had Phil Spector forced his girl groups in a more noir-soundtrack direction, this might've been the result. Ray has a truly impressive feel for vintage pop flourishes, layered to lavish effect. And all those details are what you're supposed to be paying attention to, right up until the blade hits your back.” SPIN

“The songs of British singer-songwriter Gemma Ray: they sound familiar, but when you stop and listen, you know you’ve never heard this before.” PRI

“Without sounding overwrought or arch on her new album, Ray finds a winning way to warmly blend a lot of disparate pop styles” Song of the Day, NPR

“Watching her perform, with her luminous voice and oversized cutlery, there’s no doubt that Ray is blazing her own silvertone trail” – Best of What’s Next, PASTE

“Ray plays a cool guitar — graceful wrist-flicks of blues and rockabilly-tinted ’60s pop, a mink stole in a contemporary cut — and she sings noirish ballads and boilers straight from the heart of town. Some sort of fame should follow” – RCRDLBL.COM

“There it is. That moment. It'll send shivers right down your spine. It's a Ray teases with a familiar flavor before twisting it around to the dark underbelly, but the eeriness is tempered by a flair for the pop dramatic”- BLURT

"Disarming...swooning...with noir-ish hints of Lee Hazelwood’s unearthly country-rock... Ray sits midway between Nina Simone and Isobel Campbell and is the better for it.” – MOJO

“A wonderful debut album... Gemma weaves an entrancing tapestry of soul, blues and pop, full of dark themes and late-night confessions, all presented in a sultry, seductive voice. With Duffy, Adele and Beth Rowley joining Amy Winehouse in the upper reaches of the charts, it’s clear girl singers are all the rage. But few, with the exception of Amy, are as raw and honest.” – THE SUN

“A brilliantly brooding prospect. Like a grittier Loretta Lynn, she’s from the wrong side of the tracks. Uncouthly ace.” - NME

“Imagine Norah Jones on Amy Winehouse’s drugs.” – Q

“I enjoyed Gemma Ray’s songs. I thought her guitar playing was outstanding” – Peter Sarstedt

"Gemma Ray embodies a character from a 50's film noir, delivering something that comes across as both sexy and incredibly dark, drawing everything from Nina Simone to Loretta Lynn, her luscious songs have the power to soothe the worst of heartaches." Midem Magazine

“Gemma Ray’s music defies easy categorisation...she has a clutch-purse full of sundry party tricks. You could do worse than imagine PJ Harvey in thrall to The Shangri-Las. Both Dry River and Hard Shoulder rise from minor key squalls to full girl-group majesty, while Rise Of The Runts shows she has no problem producing straight, sparkling pop.” – THE WORD

“A persuasive exercise in Hitchcockian melodrama” – UNCUT

“If Audrey from Twin Peaks were to make an album, this is what it would sound like.” – Pop Junkie TV

“A startlingly good album” – CLASH

“A compelling album packed with 50’s-inspired gems and rumbling, country-rock gems” – DIVA

"An entrancing blend of artfulness and accessibility, Ray's guitar twang and lustrous vocal deliver classic pop in sometimes spooky, but always compelling, hallucinogenic soundscapes." - DAILY MIRROR

"Gemma Ray has poise and clarity...and a clue or two about constructing melodic mini epics." - MAIL ON SUNDAY

"A compelling piece of work" - DAILY EXPRESS

"Gemma Ray takes old musical forms, but unlike Duffy and Amy Winehouse she reinvents them in an innovative and refreshing style that ensures she will be around in 10 years time." - IRISH NEWS OF THE WORLD

"If Pulp Fiction were remade to include a church scene, then London’s queen of all things noir Gemma Ray would provide the soundtrack and possibly a part as Uma Thurman’s best mate. As it is, tonight, Islington’s Union Chapel provides a righteous backdrop as she delivers a solo set of ‘50’s-soaked urban blues. Covers of Gallon Drunk’s Put a Bolt On The Door and Etta James’s I’d Rather Go Blind sit handsomely alongside new material like If You Want To Rock And Roll from her forthcoming album Lights Out Zoltar! and allow Ms Ray to make a whole host of new friends" - MOJO

credits

released September 7, 2009

Written by Gemma Ray. Produced by Michael J Sheehy & Gemma Ray. Mixed by Ben Thackeray

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Gemma Ray Berlin, Germany

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