Ssion - Opportunity Bless My Soul
(Version City)
Two interesting questions arise from an examination of SSION's Opportunity Bless My Soul: "What duty does an album have as (essentially) an artifact of a live show?" and "Is a piece of art worthwhile if, without being particularly engaging, it holds within it important ideas?" Before I attempt to answer these though, I should give some context. SSION is Cody Critcheloe's senior art project turned band; the music is, at its core, keyboard pop that is a hybrid of 50s rock duets and the current fad of 80s kitsch/nostalgia that seems to be making the rounds. Perhaps a label like "Dramatic pop" or "Dance rock" is applicable? Regardless, the album plays out like some indie rock musical, with dialogue, a plot, and characters, that follows the narrator as his band/group forms and becomes famous—a story that is either fictive or self-referential—although the blurring is such that there may be no line between the fictional band and SSION itself. That is, is Opportunity Bless My Soul an autobiographical aspiration or is it simply culled from Critcheloe's imagination with no connection to SSION itself beyond the fact that SSION is the primary actors in the drama?
The music itself, however, is largely forgettable when taken on its own. While the interpretations blend together in a hermeneutic sfumato such that one is never quite sure if it is pure parody, tongue-in-cheek, or unironicly serious, the problem that Opportunity Bless My Soul poses is that it is interesting only in the abovementioned multifaceted manner, and as a listening experience, it fails to enthrall. The idea is something akin to, say, Sherry Levine's appropriations of canonical artworks—the concept behind it is interesting, and it is great as a catalyst for discourse, but the artwork itself is rather boring since the pieces are merely reproductions or photographs of the originals. Although this will appear to be dodging the question, it is of course up to the listener to decide. For some, it might be welcome on purely intellectual grounds as it addresses the nature of pop art/music within a critical framework; for others, the highbrow evocations might not be enough to overcome the mediocrity of the music, and finally, some might just want to have fun.
The real criticism though is that this album should not be an album at all. Although recorded music has always been part of Critcheloe's arsenal, the real force of SSION comes from the live show in conjunction with the music. While there are four videos on Opportunity Bless My Soul, the actual album itself loses some real impact without the absurd costumes and ridiculous cartoons. If viewed primarily as performance art, one cannot understand it fully without the performance aspect. Like a Fluxus recording, the album is merely a fossil—the impression is there, but we are missing the vitality and import of the artwork as a whole, and one is left with the feeling that this is a mere historical curiosity.
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