Originally
published on isnotwas.com
I had just gotten Tosca's first
album when their new album Suzuki hit the streets. I liked "Opera"
so much that I bought Suzuki right away. Having just picked up
the disc, I was stuck in traffic getting pretty riled by my fellow
Charlotteans, so I slipped Suzuki out of its cellophane and into
my CD player.
After a fairly unnecessary 25 second
opening ("Pearl In"), some fluttery guitars engaged
on the second (title) track; then Anna Clementi's sexy scat singing
kicked in followed by a wicked bass line. I was instantly hooked,
and love for my neighbors flooded back to me. Well, pretty much.
If you like the suave sounds of
Austrian duo Kruder & Dorfmeister, you'll probably like Tosca,
too, because Dorfmeister actually comprises half of the band.
Rupert Huber is the other half. (Tosca's albums are on the STUD!O
K7 label; the same one K&D show up on.) Both bands produce
sophisticated, elegant comedown music in a sort of trip-hop/downbeat/electronic
vein.
As far as sophomore efforts go,
Suzuki doesn't have quite the same breadth or grit that "Opera"
has. Nor does it sample so freely nor so amusingly, though it
does have its own subtle collection of creaks and whispers. There's
no Fuck Dub or Chocolate Elvis here either. But, hey, it's a different
disk.
What Suzuki does have is grooves
aplenty and lots of that breathy scat singing by Clementi. While
the sexily insouciant "Suzuki" is the standout track
for me where her singing is concerned, Clementi's voice does provide
a lovely thread throughout the album-on tracks like "Annanas,"
"Orozco," and "Honey." That last track is
a saucy little number, too-probably deserving of its own cult
following.
Mike Daliot takes over the scat
on "Boss on the Boat," which for my money is one of
the cooler song titles I've stumbled across lately. But I'm easily
amused. "Doris Dub" is a dreamy four-minute opus that
could've gone on for twice as long, I got so lost in it. The album
ends with "Pearl Off," which brings us sonically back
to the first track.
Overall, Suzuki lacks the color
of Opera, but it's a catchier, more consistent, more refined effort.
It's also a helluva cruising disc. Those terry cloth bathrobes
on the cover really tell you all you need to know.
Robert Stribley
|
