The Tragic Treasury: Songs from A Series of Unfortunate Events
Encyclopedia
The Tragic Treasury: Songs from A Series of Unfortunate Events is the second studio album by indie pop
duo The Gothic Archies
. It is a concept album
whose songs are loosely based on the thirteen books of Daniel Handler
's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events
.
The music, like the writing in the books themselves, is morose for comic effect. Some of the songs' lyrics have something to do with the story itself and are often implicitly written in the voice of one of the corresponding book's characters; for example, "When You Play the Violin" is apparently in the voice of one of the book's five orphans, while "Dreary, Dreary" appears to be an ode to Beatrice, Lemony Snicket's ill-fated love interest. Others' connections seem to be in name only; for example, "Shipwrecked", The End
s song, is about a man who decapitates his ship's crew in an attempt to be shipwrecked on an island with his true love, only to discover that there is no island anywhere nearby. At the end of the final track ("We Are the Gothic Archies") is a section of pig latin. Reading the lyrics reveals the message "Oh, the archiesAy othicGay heTay, areAy eWay, Illiantbray yricistlay an'tcay ouyay eesay?" Interpreted, "Oh, the Archies Gothic The, Are We,Brilliant lyricist can't you see?" A promo version of the CD was briefly available to support the book The End
. It includes the tracks "Scream and Run Away", "Walking My Gargoyle", and "Crows".
with
Indie pop
Indie pop is a genre of alternative rock music that originated in the United Kingdom in the mid 1980s, with its roots in the Scottish post-punk bands on the Postcard Records label in the early '80s, such as Orange Juice, Josef K and Aztec Camera, and the dominant UK independent band of the mid...
duo The Gothic Archies
The Gothic Archies
The Gothic Archies are a self-described goth-bubblegum band created and largely performed by Stephin Merritt, more famously of The Magnetic Fields. In 1997, Merritt released The New Despair. The EP featured the song "Your Long White Fingers", which appeared frequently in the cult Nickelodeon series...
. It is a concept album
Concept album
In music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical." Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being improvised or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing...
whose songs are loosely based on the thirteen books of Daniel Handler
Daniel Handler
Daniel Handler is an American author, screenwriter and accordionist. He is best known for his work under the pen name Lemony Snicket.-Personal life:...
's book series A Series of Unfortunate Events
A Series of Unfortunate Events
A Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of children's novels by Lemony Snicket which follows the turbulent lives of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire after their parents' death in an arsonous house fire...
.
The music, like the writing in the books themselves, is morose for comic effect. Some of the songs' lyrics have something to do with the story itself and are often implicitly written in the voice of one of the corresponding book's characters; for example, "When You Play the Violin" is apparently in the voice of one of the book's five orphans, while "Dreary, Dreary" appears to be an ode to Beatrice, Lemony Snicket's ill-fated love interest. Others' connections seem to be in name only; for example, "Shipwrecked", The End
The End (A Series of Unfortunate Events)
The End is the thirteenth and final novel in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was published on October 13, 2006.- Plot description :...
s song, is about a man who decapitates his ship's crew in an attempt to be shipwrecked on an island with his true love, only to discover that there is no island anywhere nearby. At the end of the final track ("We Are the Gothic Archies") is a section of pig latin. Reading the lyrics reveals the message "Oh, the archiesAy othicGay heTay, areAy eWay, Illiantbray yricistlay an'tcay ouyay eesay?" Interpreted, "Oh, the Archies Gothic The, Are We,Brilliant lyricist can't you see?" A promo version of the CD was briefly available to support the book The End
The End (A Series of Unfortunate Events)
The End is the thirteenth and final novel in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. It was published on October 13, 2006.- Plot description :...
. It includes the tracks "Scream and Run Away", "Walking My Gargoyle", and "Crows".
Track listing
Personnel
The Gothic Archies- Stephin MerrittStephin MerrittStephin Merritt is an American singer-songwriter based in Los Angeles , best known as the principal singer and songwriter in the band The Magnetic Fields...
with
- Lemony SnicketLemony SnicketLemony Snicket is the pen name of American novelist Daniel Handler . Snicket is the author of several children's books, serving as the narrator of A Series of Unfortunate Events and appearing as a character within the series. Because of this, the name Lemony Snicket may refer to both a fictional...
/Daniel HandlerDaniel HandlerDaniel Handler is an American author, screenwriter and accordionist. He is best known for his work under the pen name Lemony Snicket.-Personal life:...
– accordionAccordionThe accordion is a box-shaped musical instrument of the bellows-driven free-reed aerophone family, sometimes referred to as a squeezebox. A person who plays the accordion is called an accordionist.... - John WooJohn Woo (musician)John Woo is a musician best known for his work with the indie pop band The Magnetic Fields.- References :...
– electric sitarElectric sitarAn electric sitar is a kind of electric guitar designed to mimic the sound of the traditional Indian instrument, the sitar. Depending on the manufacturer and model, these instruments bear varying degrees of resemblance to the traditional sitar...
See also
- A Series of Unfortunate EventsA Series of Unfortunate EventsA Series of Unfortunate Events is a series of children's novels by Lemony Snicket which follows the turbulent lives of Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire after their parents' death in an arsonous house fire...
- Lemony SnicketLemony SnicketLemony Snicket is the pen name of American novelist Daniel Handler . Snicket is the author of several children's books, serving as the narrator of A Series of Unfortunate Events and appearing as a character within the series. Because of this, the name Lemony Snicket may refer to both a fictional...
External links
- The Tragic Treasury at Nonesuch RecordsNonesuch RecordsNonesuch Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:Nonesuch was founded in 1964 by Jac Holzman to produce "fine records at the same price as a trade paperback", which would be half the price of a normal LP...
- The Tragic Treasury at LemonySnicket.com
- "Smile! No One Cares How You Feel" as performed live on WAGAWagaWaga is an isolated small town in Colombo District, Sri Lanka. Administrated by Seethawaka Pradeshiya Sabha , it is part of the Padukka Divisional Secretary's Division. The town can be reached on road from Colombo via A4 road, turning off at either Meepe near Padukka or at Kaluaggala near Hanwella...
's morning TV news show. - Interview between Stephin Merritt and Lemony Snicket, discussing the album.