ALLOPHONS, THE - BOW (MLP)

"After an edition of approximately 28 slash-up albums regurgitating the entire 20th century of music and beyond, The Allophons present their first E.P. of non-sampled material. All of the trademark Allophons elements are present - the gorgeous vocal swells, understated trance-funk rhythms and twisted melodies. The Allophons could pretty much fart into a four-track, burn it to a CD, slap their name on it, and we would release it. Thankfully this is not what The Allophons have done on this brief-yet-spectacular BOW E.P. This swooper is a beautiful, skillfully sequenced pop nugget. Starting with the dazzling voodoo opera "Bow", the E.P. leads you through the funky outer regions of sound. "Voc Beans" is a disco run by breakdancing midgets, "Who's the Papä" slaps DSP like Mark King used to slap his bass. On the B-Side laptop connoisseur Randomiz and electro-acoustic chef C-Schulz serve your ears with "In the end", a jazzy oddball reminiscent of Thelonious Monk's wacky rhythm arrangements as well as Miles Davis' space pop excursions. Randomiz's well tempered sequencing meets Schulz's vocal extravaganzas in "The Töpfer Singers", a whimsical diamond with dueling layers of vibraphone and jew's harp (played by swiss jew`s harp wizzard Anton Bruhin himself) that slide effortlessly in and out of the mix. The Record's pumping finale is "Elf", also the pumping finale of The Allophons' spectacular live sets. BOW is a full-blown blessing for those of you with turntables: it's pure pop goodness you love, with less of the annoying pops and clicks you don't." (label info)