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| Tuesday, 01 April 2008 21:05 | |||
 When I was asked to write for The Cad, one of the first people I thought I needed to interview was a man who describes his music as ‘Cocktail Noir’. He’s a mysterious character who swans in and out of the city with so little effort you’d think Sydney was little more than a train station for him - a whistle stop between LA, London, and destinations the world over whilst on his mission to spread the gospel of Dark Jazz. The man I am referring to is Jimmy Vargas, a self-described Burleycue Croonoir, a hustler, Gnostic Racateer, and all-round satanic good guy.  When one first hears his music it is a moment of rebirth: you will never listen to lounge music,swing, or just plain ol’ crooning the same way again. Vargas’ Cocktail Noir is like nothing on this planet, and neither is Vargas, himself, who is most certainly unlike anyone you will ever meet. One Saturday afternoon I waited at a small café located in the dirtiest part of Sydney, wondering why Vargas inhabits such areas that most people would avoid. As I pondered my own safety (nervously sipping my coffee and hoping some bum wouldn’t knock food all over my Ricardo jacket), Jimmy Vargas appeared out of nowhere laong with partner Mia Mortal. The couple are not only blessed with movie star looks but also an air of danger, and I can see why Vargas feels safe in the worst part of town: I don’t think even the most hardened criminal would try and put the bite on him as there’s a chance he might produce a heater and knock off some cat just as fast as he would knock off a burger with fries. Wearing a black suit with light pinstripes and a delicately positioned porkpie (a hint of dark glossy fringe hung across eyes carefully shooting across the landscape of divesville Sydney), Vargas slid into the chair across from me and started tapping his cigarette on a gold case. His résumé and life is scattered with incongruence which tends to add more mystery to the man, and I suppose a little danger as well. When you look into those eyes, you know he has seen more than most men and, most probably, a few things men should never see. His accent is difficult to place, and his language flows rapid like tommy gun fire - all the while the eyes darting from place to place and then off to a distant time that he remembers all too well.  The first time I saw Vargas perform it was to a packed house used as part of the Grindhouse gig at the Marquis Club. Located in the inner city suburb of Annandale, The Marquis is an old hotel that has see big acts come and go on a weekly basis for the last thirty years. It’s a venue for the alternative music scene, but on that night. nothing could prepare the walls for Mr. Vargas. When the lights go down and Vargas floats out with burlesque queen Mia Mortal behind him, you know you are in for a treat. He croons in dark fashion to a song from his first album El Torchtura. It is called The Girl You Left Behind, and the lights dim and brighten to the music as Mia Mortal does a slow striptease. You know there is an old soul right there in front of you, but it’s hard to explain.During our chat I asked Vargas about past lives and he tells me parts of his as a man caught up in the rackets of LA in ‘47 with a connection to the Black Dahlia. I gather there is a lot more to this story that he is not letting on, and when you look into those piercing eyes you figure there are some things you shouldn’t know. He tells me that there are some things he will spend a lifetime trying to fix and that one must always remember that mistakes never go away. Mia Mortal attended the interview and was an absolute pleasure to meet. Sometimes in my job I walk into an interview expecting a certain amount aloofness from artists who are this talented that when I meet them I’m pleasantly surprised. This is the case with Mia Mortal who simply glows when talking about burlesque, an art she has practiced long before it became mainstream with the regular joes. She constantly refers to it as art, which to some might seem a bit of a stretch, but after talking to her and learning more about it’s origins you know she is dead right. Mia Mortal and Jimmy Vargas first met back in 1999 and as a pair of artists you believe that they have a marriage made in heaven, or perhaps in Vargas’ case, a twilight hell! He says that Mia brings out the burlesque side of his show, bringing the music out of itself and making it more stage-orientated and he says it helps him visualize the music effectively which from a viewer’s point of vantage, I couldn’t agree more; you see the music and hear it at the same time making it a show that touches you with all your senses.  Vargas pauses and draws slowly on a Lucky Strike and confesses that he is in awe of Mia’s talent because she’s able to create certain moments in the show that demonstrate what a woman can do on a spiritual and sexually creative level. Mia chimes in to tell me that she also keeps Mr. Vargas in line when rehearsing a show or trying new material which adds to the show’s choreographed tightness.Jimmy Vargas considers Mia to be one of his “Inner Eight” when it comes to creating the music, the show, and the books. One who is part of the process and contributes simply from knowing what he wants and how it can be done. The interesting thing about the act is that what Vargas and Mortal are doing is quite unique in that there are no other male female acts involving crooning and burlesque which in itself make the act even more interesting, intriguing and at the same time captivating for the audience as you know there is a dance between two people going on before your very eyes which takes in 40s noir, burlesque, and a tango of two lost souls who continue to dance while time stands still.
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