Studio Cast/Concept Album, 2010 (Nonesuch) No stars, not recommended. The controversial life of politician and former First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos hardly seemed ripe for musical interpretation, and a disco opera detailing her rise to and fall from power seemed even more farfetched. But however unlikely, David Byrne (former lead singer for the band Talking Heads) and Fatboy Slim (musician and producer of electronic and indie rock music) collaborated to create Here Lies Love, originally presented to the world as a concept album that was released in 2010. The recording’s musical style is described by the writers as “disco club music,” a style chosen because of the real-life Imelda’s alleged fondness for it. The songs follow the central character and the woman who raised her, Estrella Cumpas, from Imelda’s upbringing as a poor girl to her rise as First Lady of the Philippines, continuing with her family’s forced evacuation from the country along with Ferdinand Marcos, her husband. (Marcos was controversial in his own right for the corruption, scandal, and human rights abuses that occurred during his time in office, from 1965 to 1986.) The album suffers from several issues that obscure the story the authors are attempting to tell. First, they can’t decide if Imelda Marcos is an ambitious, power-hungry temptress or merely an innocent pawn swept up in the political opportunity. And any attempt at storytelling is further marred by the plethora of pop artists enlisted to interpret the songs; the list of more than 20 singers on the album includes Florence Welch, Steve Earle, Cydni Lauper, Sia, and David Byrne himself. All of them perform competently, with Welch making the most of the maddeningly catchy title song, but each of the female artists portraying Imelda gives her a different characterization. The result is narrative whiplash — and that narrative is so loosely constructed that it’s impossible to discern who the characters are and what’s happening without consulting a plot summary. All told, this recording is an entertaining listen for curiosity’s sake, but it offers little value to fans of musical theater. — Forrest Hutchinson

Original Off-Broadway Cast, 2013 (Nonesuch) (1 / 5) It’s unfortunate that we have to judge the 2013 Off-Broadway production of Here Lies Love based solely on this audio recording, as the immersive presentation at The Public Theater was such a key part of its appeal. The show was sung-through, and some songs heard on the concept album were cut while others were added, to overall little effect. The cast album pulsates with synthesized beats, but similar to its predecessor, the songs become repetitive, without providing interesting lyrics or any understanding of the characters’ motives. Imelda is sung by the extremely talented Ruthie Ann Miles. She nails the title song, one of the many melodies that might get stuck in your head as you listen. Her voice cuts through the monotonous music, and though the role itself lacks depth, Miles is a consistently charismatic presence. Ferdinand Marcos is given an unremarkable performance by Jose Llana; surprisingly, Marcos is not the most prominently featured male character in the show; that would be Ninoy Aquino, a political reformer who had a relationship with Imelda when they were young, but who became one of the leading critics of the Marcos administration. (Think of Che in Evita.) Aquino is played by Conrad Ricamora, who gets to show off more emotional range than the others in songs such as “Child of the Philippines” and “Gate 37.” (This character largely replaces the role of the nanny, Estrella Cumpos on the concept album as a grounding presence in Imelda’s life and a reminder of her impoverished childhood.) The album is primarily an endless procession of funk music, interrupted briefly by the penultimate song, “God Draws Straight,” a soft melody accompanied by a single ukulele. The bulk of the score is better suited to a dance club setting than to close listening. If you can get your hands on a physical copy of the CD edition, it’s a colorful double-disc set that includes an 80 (!) page booklet with summaries for each track on the recording. Perhaps the feeling that it was necessary to include song summaries should be seen as an indication that prospective listeners may want to exercise caution. [Editor’s Note: A Broadway production of Here Lies Love, which attempted to recreate the immersive quality of the Off-Broadway presentation, opened in the summer of 2023. It ran for only 150 performances and three previews, and it yielded no cast album.]   — F.H.