The album is produced by Lovich and Les Chappell with additional production by Roger Bechirian and Alan Winstanley.
It was recorded at the Wisseloord Studios in Hilversum, Netherlands. She worked with Chappell and Judge Smith on writing the songs.
The cover sleeve depicts Lovich wearing a wedding dress and playing with hockey pucks on a string.
It was taken inside a stainless steel fermentation tank at a Guinness brewery, after it had been emptied prior to cleaning.
It caused controversy and few members of the Baptist church tried to get the album banned in the United States, saying it depicted an act of witchcraft.
Described as Lovich's more introverted album, Flex deals with subjects that include more of emotional and mental activity, and are often inspired by dream images.
The opening track "Bird Song" was written by Lovich and Les Chappell. When Lovich woke up in the night from a dream, she recorded different sounds on a tape recorder.
The recording later served as an inspiration for the song, where at the beginning she mimics the sounds of birds. "What Will I Do Without You?" is a song written especially for the album by Judge Smith. Another song written by him appears on the album, "You Can't Kill Me", which he had already written in 1972. It deals with reincarnation.
"Angels" is a song dedicated to people who like to live dangerously. Lovich spoke on people who do dangerous jobs and that they serve as an inspiration to other people. She also said, working in the music industry can be sometimes mentally damaging, but is also a good recreation. "The Night" is a cover of The Four Seasons' song.
Lovich picked up the record in a second hand shop out of curiosity, since she had been interested in the band's music and later decided to record it for the album.
In "Egghead", Lovich sings about people constantly learning a lot of facts, but not understanding life and practical things. In "Wonderful One", she expresses her feelings about music and how blessed she feels being able to create it. "Monkey Talk" was allegedly inspired by two books, one by Charles Darwin and Planet of the Apes by Pierre Boulle.
It points out the transience of success. Using the image of Joan of Arc, "Joan" speaks about the necessity of self-confidence to trust your own ideas.
After its release, it received relatively positive reviews praising album's enhanced production compared to her previous album Stateless' rough sound.
It was also more successful in charts, peaking at number 94 on the Billboard 200 and number 19 on the UK Albums Chart. The lead single "Bird Song" peaked at number 39 on the UK Singles Chart. The following singles were "Angels" and "What Will I Do Without You?"
Side one
1. Bird Song - 4:27
2. What Will I Do Without You - 3:35
3. Angels - 3:08
4. The Night - 4:31
5. You Can’t Kill Me - 3:45
Side two
1. Egghead - 2:26
2. Wonderful One - 4:28
3. Monkey Talk - 3:20
4. Joan - 3:18
5. The Freeze - 4:40
Personnel
- Lene Lovich – vocals, saxophone, backing vocals
- Les Chappell – guitar, synthesizer, backing vocals
- Justin Hildreth – drums, backing vocals
- Mark Heyward-Chaplin – bass, backing vocals
- Dean Klevatt – keyboards, backing vocals
- Nick Plytas – keyboards
- Chris Judge Smith - additional vocals
- Design
- C-More-Tone Studios – design
- Brian Griffin – photography
Production
- Roger Bechirian – producer, backing vocals
- Alan Winstanley – producer
- Peter Bord – engineer
Notes
Release: 1979
Format: LP
Genre: New Wave
Label: Stiff Records
Catalog# SEEZ 19
Vinyl: Goed
Hoes: Lichte Gebruikerssporen
Prijs: €7,99
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