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Momus
Stars Forever
Release Date: 1999 08 24

Grand artistic statement or money-grubbing sham? Befitting Momus' standing as contemporary pop's most eminent provocateur, Stars Forever is both -- a double-disc collection of analog-baroque cameos commissioned for 1000 each in the name of saving the singer's label from the ravages of legal fees, it's a frequently brilliant treatise on the never-ending battle between art and commerce, rising to the heights of the former as often as it succumbs to the depths of the latter. The idea behind Stars Forever is simple -- 30 "patrons" (among them everyone from modern artist Jeff Koons to hip NYC record store Other Music to the crazy kids who contribute to the online Indiepop List service) fork over a grand each for the honor of being eternally immortalized in a Momus song -- but the long-term ramifications of the project are complex and unsettling, and the paradoxes and questions it provokes are myriad. After all, who among us is truly fit to judge Momus' actions and intents? Should we respect the honesty of his "patronage pop" or deplore its capitalist shamelessness? Do these songs rob his music of the perversely personal bent which makes him special, or do they lift him out of the rut of self-obsession and offer an entirely new creative path? And what if the profits went not to a struggling indie label but to Sony? Furthermore, I'm getting paid to write this review -- how hypocritical is that? Perhaps the greatest value of Stars Forever is as a litmus test which forces each listener to answer these questions and countless others for themselves -- admire the record or despise it, it might just change your perception of pop music and the business that drives it forever. Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

Tracks:

	Title	Composer	Time
1	Minus 5	Momus	3:34
2	Akiko Masuda	Momus	2:48
3	Steven Zeeland	Momus	3:33
4	Mika Akutsu	Momus	3:06
5	Stephanie Pappas	Momus	3:41
6	Kokoro Hirai	Momus	3:07
7	Stefano Zarelli	Momus	2:49
8	Paolo Rumi	Momus	4:23
9	Natsuko Tayama	Momus	2:27
10	Girlie Action	Momus	2:15
11	Mai Noda	Momus	3:07
12	Robert Dye	Momus	3:17
13	Florence Manlik	Momus	2:17
14	Adam Green	Momus	3:33
15	Maf	Momus	2:32
16	Other Music	Momus	2:07
17	Tinnitus	Momus	2:06
18	3d Corporation	Momus	2:44
19	Miles Franklin	Momus	3:36
20	Shawn Krueger	Momus	3:35
21	Jeff Koons	Momus	3:42
22	Noah Brill	Momus	2:56
23	Team Clermont	Momus	3:25
24	Bfent Bushboom	Momus	3:19
25	Indiepop List	Momus	5:22
26	Keigo Oyamada	Momus	3:06
27	Minty Fresh	Momus	1:55
28	Molton Jacobson	Momus	3:05
29	Reckless Records	Momus	2:10
30	Karin Komoto	Momus	3:07
31	Christian Carl	Momus	2:16
32	Bill Hardy	Momus	1:53
33	Mr. Kate Kenkins	Momus	1:28
34	Diego Zapparoli and Paola	Momus	2:05
35	Jack Curtis Dubowsky	Momus	2:18
36	Topo	Momus	2:07
37	Richard Knowles	Momus	1:32
38	Olivier Schopfer	Momus	1:38
39	Momus	Momus	21:13