Although the track may be over eight years old, the passage of time apparently hasn't mitigated how grimy Venetian Snares managed to get with this heavy orchestral break-beat rework of Billie Holiday's rendition of "Gloomy Sunday."
The song "Gloomy Sunday" was originally penned by Hungarian composer Reszo Seress in the 30s, shortly before his fiancé committed suicide (leading many to postulate that the song drove her, and ultimately others, to the grisly act -- which lead to its eventual banishment in Hungary!).
While Billie Holiday's rendition is certainly responsible for any popularity "Gloomy Sunday" may have seen in the U.S., It seems as though Venetian Snares' intended homage is towards Seress given the original Hungarian track ID. Not to mention that the spirit of desolation and subversion that drives the rework seems more consistent with the Hungarian original fabled to drive its listeners to suicide.
The 2005 album Rossz Csillag Alatt Született (I dare you to pronounce it) seems to be a bit of an ode to gloominess in general, and that's not always my cup of tea. But I can't resist the juxtaposition of Billie Holiday's smooth lachrymose vocals and the frenetic break-beat snares that punctuate this string-laden track. After all these years, Öngyilkos Vasárnap is still pretty nasty.
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