Tina Root is the main vocalist and she reminds me of The Creature's Siouxsie (a common comparison in this specific genre). Susan Wallace sometimes underlies and harmonizes the singing parts that accent the brooding melodies but she mostly takes care of the synthesizers and programming while Robin Jacobs provide the guitars, bass and drumming on "Wrecking Yard" and, one of my favorite tracks, "Clown". And if you're obsessed with the words, the lyrics are all included inside the booklet.

I really hope that Switchblade Symphony team up again but it's very unlikely... However, wishful thinking can't hurt ... much, anyway.


This CD Rocks!   July 5, 2000
 8 out of 9 found this review helpful

This CD is one of the best CDs I have ever had. I got it more than a year and a half ago, and ever since then I've been listening to it almost all the time, despite the fact that my music tastes tend to change rather quickly and suddenly and can revert back to their previous states in just as little time.

The vocals on this CD are done nearly perfectly. They are operatic, melodic, and yet still retain anger, feeling, emotion, and passion. The lyrics, while at first can seem somewhat repetitive, become very distinguishable after a short period of time.

In addition, the melodies and musical landscapes of this CD range from silent and haunting, such as on "Dissolve" and "Wrecking Yard" to angry and apocalyptic on tracks such as "Bad Trash," "Clown," and "Mine Eyes."

The band obviously put a lot of time and effort into this release, especially since each song sounds extremely different from all of the other songs on the CD and each one is layered with multiple soundscapes and textures, some of which I've only just begun to notice even after owning the CD for as long as I have.

I find it unfortunate that "Bread and Jam for Frances" and "The Three Calamities" did not turn out as well as this one did, although I do listen to both of them quite often as well. Personally, I think the three best songs on "Serpentine Gallery" are "Mine Eyes" despite its repetition, "Dissolve," and "Clown."


Trite tripe   July 15, 2005
 8 out of 51 found this review helpful

Switchblade Symphony's Serpentine Gallery is widely considered the quintessential darkwave and/or modern-day gothic album.

This is nothing short of a travesty.

While definitely not a fanatic, I've delved quite a bit into the goth/industrial/darkwave genres and have mostly been impressed by the bands' atmospheric darkness, beauty, and compositional skill. I of course love the classics (Bauhaus, the Cure, the Sisters of Mercy, Christian Death, et al), but I also find a few acts today to be worthy, such as London After Midnight and Bella Morte. When I heard THIS album, however, the only thing on my mind was, "When is this going to end?"

This is one of the most excruciatingly BORING albums I have ever had the misfortune of hearing. There is nothing dark, atmospheric, beautiful, emotional, exciting, or shocking about this album, which really sucks, because something with the "goth" label oughta have at least a couple of those aforementioned traits.

The female vocals are HORRIBLE, and have all the vocal presence of American Idol rejects. They are absolutely deadpan and reflect no emotion or passion whatsoever.

The music is uncreative, hackneyed, and just downright dull. There is no drive or danceability, nor anything unique and stimulating created by the tired combination of keyboards, drum machines, and guitars. The songs never feel like they get anywhere, but rather are content to merely float about until they're mercifully ended.

The lyrics are awful, much like the lyrics of most modern-day goth bands. Plenty of cliched references to death, glitter, dolls, and darkness.

Please, people, if you are considering getting this album because you're interested in the goth scene, I urge you to steer clear of this absolutely abysmal, sleep-inducing piece of garbage.

As a bonus, here is a list of 10 true goth albums you should buy instead of this:
1.Bauhaus- In the Flat Field
2.The Cure- Pornography
3.The Cure- Disintegration
4.The Sisters of Mercy- Floodland
5.Siouxsie and the Banshees- Kaleidoscope
6.Christian Death- Only Theatre of Pain
7.ANYTHING by Joy Division or Dead Can Dance
8.Type O Negative- Bloody Kisses
9.London After Midnight- Psycho Magnet
10.Bella Morte- Where Shadows Lie



Quite simply, an absolute must-have   December 10, 1998
 7 out of 7 found this review helpful

I had never heard of Switchblade Symphony when I bought Wired Injections, a Cleopatra various artists disc. The song of theirs on that disc, "Clown," had me completely entranced. It took me months to find the elusive disc that was mentioned in the liner notes on WI, and when I did finally see it, it was mine. While I was searching for it, I heard "Wallflower" on Gothic Rock 2, which only made me want the disc more. Since the day I got it, it has become one of my all-time favorite discs. If it were a tape or record album, it would be totally worn out by now. This is a disc that you can put in, turn the lights down low, sit back and just drift to. Even my fiance like them, and she doesn't like "goth" music. It's almost impossible for me to pick a single favorite from it, although I'm tempted to say "Clown." It was the one that first entranced me, and it continues to do so to this day. However, it has very strong contenders in "Sweet," "Gutter Glitter," "Mine Eyes," and "Dollhouse." The ending instrumental, "Bloody Knuckles," is the perfect way to end such a perfect album. Bravo, ladies. 5 out of 5.


Textbook example of a good goth album   February 11, 2001
 7 out of 8 found this review helpful

I wish Switchblade Symphony had stuck with this mid-90s sound rather than going trip-hop. Why? I'm a whinybutt, THAT'S why. "Serpentine Gallery" is a great "how to" darkwave rock album. The opening track, "Bad Trash" is a goth dancefloor classic. The songs are a good balance of guitar, 80's synth and spooky vocals. They don't all sound the same, but it sounds like the band's having fun all the way through. The lyrics are better-than-average goth poetry. "Bad Trash," "Dissolve" (dramatic tune, I must say) and "Wrecking Yard" cover a lot of ground and Tina Root's faux-operatic vocal style is cool. Sorry for using "faux." They moved into more Miranda Sex Garden-type music with the next two albums, but the lyrics stayed pretty close to the mood of "Serpentine Gallery." Switchblade Symphony is more about beguiling songs than Fitting Into Goth.