"Dance With The Lemurs" is the fifth track from Danny Elfman's album "Big Mess".
I don't know what the hell Danny means by dancing with the lemurs. I thought it was a figure of speech, but when I googled it, only his song showed up in the results. Well anyway, seems like he no longer does that, probably due to age. Nevertheless, Mr. Elfman's age didn't stop him from making a brilliant edgy album, and this song is one of its highlights.
The piece starts off with a metallic rhythm rocking a 7/8 time signature. A muted guitar joins in the mix, which can be likened to a Tool riff, but only because the latter have already exhausted every possible mystical riff with an odd timing.
The singing starts, along with funky percussion on the cymbals. You can feel the pain in Danny's voice, as he mourns for simpler times. Is he talking about himself, or humanity? Or perhaps he's literally singing from the POV of an animal that he was obsessed with?
In the chorus, Elfman repeats "and I danced with the lemurs under moonlight" 3 times, instead of the usual 2 or 4 repetitions in pop music. He sings the next line, "All night long" 5 times! It bothers me a lot, because he changes the pitch late on the fourth iteration and resolves the tension on the fifth. But it fits the song perfectly -- it drags, the same way the hero's long nights used to stretch into oblivion. It also helps how Danny eases into the word "all" using vocal fry, before it takes shape into a tone.
After the chorus, a melodic string section paints visions of infinite deserts. It's interesting that it sounds oriental, even though the song is in the natural minor scale (aeolian). Usually you get this effect with the harmonic minor scale. But it gets even stranger, after the second chorus, when the strings switch from an A minor to an A dorian, creating an uneasy, but also a trippy, almost hallucinogenic atmosphere, like you see a mirage in the desert.
The piece ends in a beautiful harmony, performed by gentle violins.
Rating: 10/10 emeralds
This is music to catch you off guard, but it's also music that delivers, never leaving the listener unsatisfied -- at least not me!
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