Album Notes

You were my very own Pearl Harbor
stopped me unaware
blew me out of the water
while I lay safe in my dark bedroom
you were coming at me from above

How do you take an image like Pearl Harbor and make it positive? According to Elizabeth McCullough, aka Alpha Cat, in imagining the song: "it occurred to me that this place was named Pearl Harbor before it was bombed, and that must be because literally, there were pearls there. And I tried to imagine what it might take to get back to this place being about treasure, rather than war and destruction."

"In the vein of the old New York City stuff - Patti Smith, Velvet Underground, Television - Alpha Cat's approach to music shows more depth of thought than many of the teenage hucksters out there right now. Lyrically, the songs are rich, as the various stories unfold and play out... At the forefront are the vocals of Elizabeth McCullough, lazy and cutting like Patti Smith's, at times ethereal along the lines of Joni Mitchell or a quiet Chrissy Hynde... Like a poetry reading, she weaves her voice, alternating between a matter-of-fact speaking tone and low-key approach to singing, and one could easily imagine her sitting at a table, smoking a cigarette, and delivering the goods.
(Bill Ribas, New York Rock:March 2003)

Upon listening, it's apparent that the well from which Alpha Cat songs generally spring is longtime photographer McCullough's understanding of how equally both the absence and presence of light define the world we see. What else is clear is that this is a genuine exploration of the terms of emotional survival.How do you take an image like Pearl Harbor and make it positive? According to Eli"zabeth McCullough, aka Alpha Cat, in imagining the song: "it occurred to me that this place was named Pearl Harbor before it was bombed, and that must be because literally, there were pearls there. And I tried to imagine what it might take to get back to this place being about treasure, rather than war and destruction."



As for the inception of Alpha Cat; in the mid-90's McCullough ran into James Mastro, whom she had photographed while he was in Hoboken, NJ stars the Bongos. She asked him to listen to some songs, and he happened to be in the market for photos for his current group, Health and Happiness Show, which at that time included Television guitarist Richard Lloyd. McCullough and Lloyd got to talking, with the result being that Lloyd played on her first studio demo. The Mastro connection also led to a friendship with Television bassist Fred Smith, who agreed to produce a new demo, which turned into the CMJ Nationally charting ep, "Real Boy". Smith went on to produce, with McCullough, the full length Pearl Harbor, as well as a track for the Lauren Ambrose starring indie flick "Swimming."