Rasa Mello II

Performer: Various Artists/Adult.
Engineer: Jeff Coplan
Producer: Donna D'Cruz; Christoph H. Müller; E. Pannozzo; Eduardo Makaroff; Goldtrix; B. Nardella; Ansgar Ueffink; Adam Plack; Philippe Cohen Solal; Riccardo Eberspacher; Yaron Fuchs
Distributor: Alternative Dis. Alliance

Notes: Adult: Nicola Kuperus (vocals); Adam Lee Miller. Adapter: L�o Delibes. Personnel: Kylie Auldist, Chen Reiss, Stephanie Hundertmark (vocals); B. Nardella (guitar); Marie-Claire Cremers (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Donna d'Cruz; Ansgar Ueffink; Albert Castillo. Audio Remixers: Beaches N Cream; Steve Miller. Liner Note Author: Namast�. Editors: Donna d'Cruz; Albert Castillo. Arrangers: E. Pannozzo; Adam Plack; Riccardo Eberspacher; Yaron Fuchs. Despite its title, there's nothing particularly mellow about most of the music on this unusual compilation -- or at least, there's nothing mellow about its best tracks, which luckily make up a majority of the program. The album opens with a gloriously cheesy number entitled "Voyager in the Night," credited to Lawrence d'Arabia (which seems to be a pseudonym for Jean-Michel Jarre), and the Spanish guitar, tympani, and swelling horns and strings end up sounding like an attempted fusion between a spaghetti Western soundtrack and Middle Eastern exotica. It's wonderful. Things get less goofy and more funky as the program progresses, with a nice downtempo funk setting of some poetry by Tagore (credited to Deepak Chopra, whose heavily treated voice is woven in among some virtuoso programming by Adam Plack), a fascinating duo between fretless bass and tabla by Grupo Batuque, and a nice remix of "Guide Me God" by Ghostland, featuring guest vocals by Sin�ad O'Connor and Natacha Atlas. The album bogs down into unimpressive ambient noodling in the middle, but the first half and the last few tracks are well worth the price of admission. Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson Kicked shins, punched chins, glued eyelids, bloody noses, and the attendant fraught nerves -- Adult.'s lyrical themes have changed somewhat, but only somewhat, on their first proper album. What goes for the lyrics also goes for the music; they're still making paranoid dance-punk that has more to do with Fad Gadget than being an actual fad gadget, but there are enough alterations to ward off any notion that this duo is spinning its wheels. In that sense, they have managed to stay the same while changing at the same time -- that tricky maneuver that most artists are unable to pull off under the pressure of expectations. As impressive as that is, what truly matters is that Anxiety Always is Adult. firing on every cylinder. Not only does it hold the duo's most sleek and vicious material, it also proves that they can construct a bracing, compulsively digestible-in-whole album that presents the broad range of sounds and complementary sequencing that most great albums require. On "Turn Your Back," buzzsaw guitars and a rattling bassline bolster Adam Le Miller's typically brittle but adroit rivet-gun drum programming. Nicola Kuperus' breathless, rapid-fire delivery -- including a hectoring "neh neh neh" -- rattles off a list of situations and lifestyle hazards that cause hypertension, from a siren to a full parking lot to a corporate job. The closing "Kick in the Shin" puts a cap on the record while also functioning as its climax, with racing synth patterns and a start-stop-stutter rhythmic thrust. Here, Kuperus' voice takes an assured singsongy tone that she'd do well to utilize more often. Adult., a duo that previously appeared to be created for the kind of transient jolt provided by the 12" format, can take pride in the fact that they made one of the most electrifying albums of 2003. ~ Andy Kellman Despite its title, there's nothing particularly mellow about most of the music on this unusual compilation -- or at least, there's nothing mellow about its best tracks, which luckily make up a majority of the program. The album opens with a gloriously cheesy number entitled "Voyager in the Night," credited to Lawrence d'Arabia (which seems to be a pseudonym for Jean-Michel Jarre), and the Spanish guitar, tympani, and swelling horns and strings end up sounding like an attempted fusion between a spaghetti Western soundtrack and Middle Eastern exotica. It's wonderful. Things get less goofy and more funky as the program progresses, with a nice downtempo funk setting of some poetry by Tagore (credited to Deepak Chopra, whose heavily treated voice is woven in among some virtuoso programming by Adam Plack), a fascinating duo between fretless bass and tabla by Grupo Batuque, and a nice remix of "Guide Me God" by Ghostland, featuring guest vocals by Sin�ad O'Connor and Natacha Atlas. The album bogs down into unimpressive ambient noodling in the middle, but the first half and the last few tracks are well worth the price of admission. Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson

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