Album: Lullaby Land / Original Release Date: 1994. Genre: Alternative. Song Duration: 4 min 25 sec. Rate Crib Death by Vampire Rodents (current rating: 7.20) 1 2. Lullaby Land was released in 1993 and marked a musical maturity for Vampire Rodents. The music boasted house beats, swing rhythms and world music influences while continuing to explore avant-garde and industrial music.

Dan Gatto (born Dan Merrick Gatto; September 21, 1970) is an American musician best recognized as the vocalist for synth punk band Babyland. He also collaborated with Vampire Rodents composer Daniel Vahnke on a project called Recliner. After Babyland dissolved in 2009, Gatto founded Continues as an outlet for his solo work.

Biography[edit]

Dan Merrick Gatto was born on September 21, 1970 and raised in the San Francisco Bay area. He became passionate about music at the age of twelve when he discovered The Human League's Dare album. By fifteen he had begun to compose electronic music and in 1989 formed the synth punk group Babyland with percussionist Michael Smith. They released six full-length albums between 1992 and 2008: You Suck Crap, A Total Letdown, Who's Sorry Now, Outlive Your Enemies, The Finger and Cavecraft.^[1] In 1992, Gatto met Daniel Vahnke, vocalist and composer for Vampire Rodents, and together they started the project Recliner. They collaborated on three songs together, 'Trilobite', 'Noise Dive' and Zygote, all of which appear on Vampire Rodents' Lullaby Land and Clockseed albums.^[2] In 2009, Michael Smith announced that he had become dissatisfied with the direction Babyland had headed and the duo parted ways in October of that year. Still eager to pursue music, Gatto began composing under the moniker Continues and released a self-titled solo album under the name in 2012.^[3]

Discography[edit]

Babyland

• You Suck Crap (1992)
• A Total Letdown (1994)
• Who's Sorry Now (1995)
• Outlive Your Enemies (1998)
• The Finger (2004)
• Cavecraft (2008)

Continues

• Continues (2012)

Guest appearances

• Vampire Rodents: Lullaby Land (1993)
• Vampire Rodents: Clockseed (1995)
• Philipp Münch: Mondo Obscura (2012)

References[edit]

1. ^'Babyland > Overview'. Allmusic. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
2. ^Kazsuk, Dathan (September 13, 1992). 'Vampire Rodents Interview'. Dysmetria. Archived from the original on July 9, 2000. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
3. ^'An Interview With Dan Gatto of Continues'. I Die: You Die. idieyoudie.com. June 7, 2012. Retrieved November 3, 2016.

External links[edit]

• Continues on Facebook
• Continues at Bandcamp
• Dan Gatto discography at Discogs

Lullaby Land is the third studio album by Vampire Rodents, released on October 25, 1993 by Re-Constriction Records.^[1] The album utilizes strings, horns, and timpanis backed with industrial music tropes.

Music and lyrics[edit]

Daniel Vahnke's lyrics focus on topics such as referring to the UN is a genocide monitor, daring Muslims to nuke Belgrade, cattle drive-by shootings, and 'the only good Nazi is a dead Nazi'.^[2] The album has much more emphasis on guitars than either of their previous releases, while retaining their usual sound.

The tracks 'Trilobite' and 'Nosedive' were made in collaboration with 'electronic junk punk' band Babyland and was first released on the Rivet Head Culture compilation under the band name Recliner. This collaboration would continue throughout the Rodents career.

Reception[edit]

Lullaby Land has been well received by critics, some even considering it among the greatest industrial albums ever recorded. Exclaim! called it their best work, saying 'these folks can turn collage into counterpoint the way only masters of the avant-garde have done; Zappa comes to mind for those old enough to remember the delirious metamorphoses on Absolutely Free.' Aiding & Abetting also gave it a positive review, saying 'layer upon layer of samples and instruments combine into an almost symphonic orgy of sound.' and compared it favorably to Public Enemy'sFear of a Black Planet.^[3]Keyboard said 'Unlike the single-mindedness of death metal (which has some of the terroristic sounds and voices), this music offers more color and intellectual possibilities. But it also has industrial music's sense of intensity.'

Much was said about the eclecticism of the music, with i/e praising the band for pushing the boundaries of industrial music, saying 'with no repeated chorus rhymes and musical riffs, they forge ahead, staying away from stale techno and industrial treachery' and that 'nobody creates the different moods and emotional states that the Vampires create.' Buzz (magazine) agreed, saying 'The Rodents have scoffed at conventional song formation and continue to do so, incorporation cello and violin into a deranged stew that sounds something like Robocop dismembering an orchestra. Off the beaten path as far as electronic music goes: you can dance, but these guys force you to think, too.' RIP also praised the variety of the album, saying 'Lullaby Land is a seething cauldron on cello (!), guitar, live percussion, and a very eccentric repertoire of samples that often implode into a 1000 points of noise,' concluding that 'I was particularly taken with the moody ambience of Akrotiri and propulsive density of Bosch Erotiqe.'

The oppressive atmosphere of the album was also subject to praise, with Welcomat describing the music as 'a merciless castigation of contemporary society' that 'unfolds against a gothic backdrop and laments the strangle hold materialism, rudeness and decadence have on society.' Gear credited the band with creating a cinematic experience with their music, saying they 'want to create classic horror movies and are using music, not film, as their medium. Bypassing the too easy and predictable formula of blood and screams, the Rodents' vision involves nail-biting strings, don't-open-that-door horn blasts, bump-in-the-night drum beats, and mortuary vocals to provide a chair-arm gripping listening experience.' Plazm noted that 'it would be really hard to compare this to anything. There's just this strong emotional power that this band has through their music and leaves me dumbfounded to describe this piece of art to the fullest way.'

Track listing[edit]

All lyrics are written by Daniel Vahnke, except where noted; all music is composed by Daniel Vahnke, except 'Passage' by Victor Wulf and 'Piano Trio No. 2 in E-flat major, Op. 100, D. 929' by Franz Schubert.

Accolades[edit]

Personnel[edit]

Adapted from the Lullaby Land liner notes.^[5]

Vampire Rodents

• Andrea Akastia – cello, violin
• Jing Laoshu – percussion
• Daniel Vahnke(as Anton Rathausen) – lead vocals, sampler, guitar, musical arrangement
• Victor Wulf – synthesizer

Additional musicians

Vampire Rodents Lullaby Land Cartoon

• Marc C. Bennet – electric guitar(3, 14)
• Dan Gatto – lead vocals(1, 15)
• Pall Jenkins(as The Sandman)^[6] – lead vocals (5)
• Jared Louche – lead vocals (9)

Production

Vampire Rodents Lullaby Land 1933

• Joan McAninch – mastering

Release history[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Lullaby Land'. Allmusic. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
2. ^'Vampire Rodents/Ether Bunny Interview 2007'. themindofmicrowaved.blogspot.com. June 2007. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
3. ^'Vampire Rodents: Lullaby Land'. Aiding & Abetting (45). November 30, 1993. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
4. ^'Ondarock - Rock Milestones'. Ondarock. Retrieved 2010-05-02.
5. ^Lullaby Land (booklet). Vampire Rodents. San Diego, California: Re-Constriction Records. 1993.CS1 maint: others (link)
6. ^Dougherty, Julie (1992). 'Gear Interview'. Gear. Archived from the original on February 2, 1999. Retrieved July 12, 2015.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)

Vampire Rodents Lullaby Land Musical

External links[edit]

Vampire Rodents Lullaby Land Disney

• Lullaby Land at Bandcamp
• Lullaby Land at Discogs (list of releases)

Vampire Rodents Lullaby Land Rar