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Almost An Angel Sunset Room Mizmo Records, 2002
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Reviewed by Sienna Powers
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What's in a name? When it comes to bands, quite often the answer is: Next to nothing. But if a group can hit on a moniker that instantly evokes the sound they most want to be known for, so much the better. Such is the case with Sunset Room, a handle that seems instantly evocative of elegant little smoky bars and lost weekends pleasantly spent. Sunset Room was formed in 1997 by James Flores (drums and keyboards) and Tim Rumbaugh (bass and programming) then making music influenced by Morcheeba and Portishead. The addition of vocalist Catie Moore in 1998 allowed Sunset Room to progress to the fresh, original sounds they're making today. That Sunset Room is pretty difficult to categorize is evidenced by a recent nomination for Best Jazz Group at the Orange County Music Awards. And while there are jazz elements here, Sunset Room is clearly not jazz as we've come to understand that genre. Trip hop? Maybe, though the jazz elements previously mentioned make that thin ice, as well. Sunset Room describes themselves as "Jazz Electronica," adding that they mix "electronic and acoustic instruments to create a future-retro sound, tied together with jazz-driven vocals." And I've quoted that precisely because it describes Sunset Room as well as anything could. Sunset Room's first full CD, Almost An Angel, was released in late 2001 and re-released in early 2002. Almost An Angel was produced by Sunset Room and engineer Marty Beal and gives the feeling of an effortless blend of all the genres and influences that Sunset Room have touched, without being derivative of any of them. The album opens with "Smoke," written by Flores and Moore, on plaintive sax notes. The sax gives way to classic blues progressions that breaks only for our first encounter with Catie Moore's vocals. Moore is velvet on "Smoke," and the lyrics -- intelligent and perfectly laid-down, like all of this album -- remind us, again, of the appropriateness of this band's name: Sitting in this lifeless bar, I look to you, don't know where you are. You seem to just float from me, like the smoke in my eyes I can barely see. Candles lit, I take a drag, how the hell did it get so bad? Moore scats competently through part of the song, the sax reoccurs, the blues beat never entirely fades and we're left with a modern interpretation of prime-time torch. "Future-retro sound," indeed. The first single from Almost An Angel is the James Flores-penned "Empty Room." A moody piece that evokes techno-meets-Twin-Peaks. Here Moore's voice at times soars over the dark musical tracks then falls back to a resonant whisper, allowing the music center stage. Gorgeous. Sunset Room never put a foot wrong on Almost An Angel. I wouldn't, as the saying goes, change a hair. The song writing -- all of it by the various members of Sunset Room -- is thoughtful and thought-provoking. Music and lyrics seem faultless here and production is dreamy: neither over nor underproduced. There is a finished quality to Almost An Angel that is completely without the oily slickness that often signifies overproduction. In case it's not clear from any of the above, Almost An Angel is a triumph for this fledgling group. Look for them currently touring in their native Southern California. Though, to be quite honest, I'd be surprised not to see them farther afield in the near future. | May 2002
Sienna Powers is a writer, editor and visual artist. |
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