POP SURREALIST ROBYN HITCHCOCK LOOKS THROUGH A GLOBE DARKLY FOR
By LEN RIGHI and The Morning Call
•
Apr 02, 1988 at 12:00 am

His fans call him "god." Those less enamored of his surreal songsmithing say he's a "minor artist." But to be blunt about it, most people haven't the faintest idea who Robyn Hitchcock is.

Well, the 34-year-old Londoner, who performs Monday night at the Chestnut Cabaret in Philadelphia, happens to be the object of a record company campaign aimed at raising his profile and getting his latest LP, "Globe Of Frogs," played on mainstream rock radio. ("Frogs" currently is No. 113 on Billboard's album chart.)

In a recent phone conversation from his London home, Hitchcock seemed to view with dark amusement the zeal of his devoted fans who try to decipher the lyrics to his songs and his relationship with his new record company. Of the former, he said, "People are always saying all sorts of things really, contorting themselves with rage, with disgust, with incredulity or contempt. But either you understand the language or you don't. It's like showing the Sistine Chapel to an anteater, or the Mona Lisa to a baboon. Once you become familiar with the language . . ."

Then, rather suddenly, Hitchcock asserted, "I can't really spend my time discussing other people's misconceptions, or I wouldn't do anything else. I'm in the last wave of explaining myself now. I'm not walking around with stone tablets telling people what stuff is. People misunderstand, misconstrue what I do."

And as for the benefits of having a major American label, A&M; Records, distribute and get behind his new LP, Hitchcock had this to say: "Well, A&M; has a bigger sales force and a better distribution network. "And," he added drily, "I get to do a lot more interviews. They (A&M;) were prepared not to interfere with the creating and marketing."

Again, without warning, Hitchcock departed from the script, almost blurting out, "Actually it's mutual parasitism. As long as both parties need equally, things are fine. It's when one needs the other more, that's when it doesn't work out."

Hitchcock's cold water-in-the-face candor throws his witty conversation into relief in much the same way his dark lyrics do his genial tunesmithing on the seven heavily praised solo albums since he's recorded since the turn of the decade. Hitchcock, however, is the first to acknowledge that a witty sensibility is as trendy as a hula hoop.

"There's not much respect around for what's called whimsy," he said. "You have to be iron-clad to survive. It's a reaction to what happened in the late '60s, when some people believed that human nature was going to change overnight, and it didn't. That impossible euphoria naturally was followed by depression. That utopian way of thinking has become discredited."

Still, Hitchcock readily admits that his work has its roots in '60s pop surrealism. OK, down to brass tacks. How about some help understanding Hitchcock's language? Here's what he had to say about "Globe Of Frogs' " title track: "It's a whole vision conceived in a courtyard where there's a homoerotic sculpted statue, like the Narcissus of legend. He has two red eyes that light up. There are leafy fronds and sensual looking shrubbery and little things in the water, frog images. The statue's fingers begin to drip, like wax, into the water."

Translation? "It's about a soul waiting to be made flesh. When two people are out there (making love), they really want to have a baby; the soul has the urge to incarnate. Now don't misunderstand. I'm not preaching; I'm a totally earthly person. I'm seeing it from the soul's point of view, like planes waiting to land."

Hmmmm. Well, how about "Tropical Flesh Mandala"? (A mandala, by the by, is a mystical symbol of the universe.) "That's on the same theme, really. The idea of something coming out of the sea, something to do with sex. The girl (in the song) is a bit nervous, but her older sister explains what is happening."

One final try. What about "Balloon Man" (which ostensibly is about a toy vendor who mysteriously explodes)? "Essentially that's about the stock market crash, overconsumption leading to mass suicide. It's my interpretation of the American dream."

For all the stimulating lyrics and the preoccupation with sex and death, Hitchcock's music is generally tuneful, inviting pop that draws on sources like the Beatles and Kinks, and Hitchcock revels in that ambiguity, and also realizes it will keep a large audience at arm's length.

"People wanna see meaning spelled out, or they feel insecure. Challenge people's sense of meaning, and they get indignant. They don't like their sense of reality to be mocked."

Robyn Hitchcock And The Egyptians perform Monday night at the Chestnut Cabaret, 3801 Chestnut St., Philadelphia. For information, call 896-6420 or 382-1201.