Anthology


Anthology of the Food
A compilation of seventeen Venus Fly Trap tracks.

1. I Get Flowers
2. Ruby Red
3. Hazy Future
4. Rocket USA
5. Cloud 9 Lips
6. Opium War
7. A Tribute To War Heroes
8. Rose Coloured Spectacle
9. Europa
10. Achilles Heel
11. Weep Hotel
12. TV Falls From A Hotel Window
13. World Turned Upside Down
14. 19th Incident
15. Pulp Sister
16. 28th March
17. 13 O'clock

© Venus Fly Trap 2001


“Rocksound” Magazine UK Feb 2003

Alex Novak’s Venus Fly Trap were kind of around at the wrong time, simply just a little too late for the theorizing art-goth movement that still inspires them. Drawing from all five of their albums, with a few extra bits thrown in for good measure, “Anthology Of The Food” follows the harrowing retreat of the band as they stuck to their arrantly non-commercial guns while around them goth fell into soft-rock postures and bastardized melodies. As such it throws up some real gems of new wave goth angst. “Europa” is all Magazine-inspired bass, they play at the gothic Elvis on the rockabilly sneer of “Cloud 9 Lips”, while “13 O’Clock” finally makes concessions to the rise of electronica, albeit in a distinctly Suicide movement blossoming with floral guitars. Much tastier than the current band of schlock-gothics doing the rounds.

Alex Whitehead - 8/10
'Kaleidoscope' Magazine April 2003

Although Northampton's Venus Fly Trap have been lurking around for some time now, I hadn't previously taken much notice of them, so when I listened to one of their cds for the first time I found their music to be not at all what I had expected it to sound like - it was so much better! 'Anthology' is a compilation album of tracks from VFT's previous five albums, spanning over a decade of diverse sounds. VFT manage to create music that somehow sounds familiar, yet completely unlike any other band I can think of. Whilst a variety of instruments are evidentmost of the tracks are carried by catchy guitar hooks and riffs, and throbbing drum beats. The overall mood drawn from this complilation is a western romantic/tribal vision of wandering through deserts on Ruby Red to Weep Hotel - often downbeat, but with a striving undercurrent. Also included on this anthology is a cover of Suicide's Rocket USA - which evidently acknowledges the Sigue Sigue Sputnik song of the same name! Although VFT aren't 'goth' in sense of the current scene, they are perhaps more reminiscent of the diversity that existed when goth was in its infancy. An excellent introduction to an excellent and enjoyable band

Nadine