|
In case you didn't know, Anni Rossi is the most exciting thing to
happen to the viola in... well, forever. Dumpier and lower in range
than its cousin the violin, the viola is like the back-up singer that
knows she has better tone than that screechy old Beyonce, but ain't as
flashy.
Rossi sets the instrument free, dishing up, with Rockwell,
punchy pizzicato over syncopated rhythms, with the occasional howling
run of strings. Ladies and gents, the Devil may be close to giving up
the fiddle.
Granted, you will likely have heard quite a bit of Rockwell before.
Machine, Venice, Ecology, West Coast and Wheelpusher all make it over
from the Afton EP, and form the central tracks on the new album.
But Rossi has worked well with producer Steve Albini to clean up
the tracks, and pick up the pace, making them sparse and wonderful,
like intricate machines. Albini has also, it seems, encouraged Rossi
to let go of her tendency towards screeches and yelps, which should
put rest to all the comparisons with Joanna Newsom.
Ecology in particular has come the furthest, and tends to
overshadow opener Machine. It's a poppy, driving track, that fills out
the usual empty spaces in Rossi's music with the addition of '70s
keyboards. Lyrically, it's a bizarre little meditation on the
life-cycle of the butterfly - you could almost imagine it appearing on
The Electric Company with helpful charts and live footage - but Rossi
manages to haul it back to the right side of kitsch... just.
Elsewhere it's all about that beautifully warm and high voice
contrasting with the viola and railing against sudden tempo changes.
The West Coast is even more mournful than in previous versions, while
Deer Hunting Camp 17, is the most welcome of the new additions, taking
the form of a creepy ditty dedicated to a teacher. You'll find
yourself singing "That'll be all, Mr Hunt" at just about every
opportunity, earning alarmed looks from strangers everywhere.
Odddly,
this most fascinating of pieces is placed right next to Living In
Danger, the Ace Of Base cover that label 4AD are bigging up.
It's cute, sure, but once your brain catches up with your ears it
becomes more and more of a gimmick.
Glaciers is probably the least successful of the new additions.
It's a bit forgettable, a bit too obvious: "This is a song about
glaciers," runs the opening line. Well, it's good we got that cleared
up straight away.
Fortunately, it fades into the magnificent
Wheelpusher. Nowhere else does Rossi achieve such beautiful symmetry
between her lyrics and her music. She croons: "To be a beekeeper in
the Himalayas," and you can just feel that delicate mountain air, as
well as the absurdity of the concept. Air Is Nothing rounds up
proceedings, and is a fairly traditionally structured ballad, saved by
beautiful execution.
So, it seems that 4AD is on to a winner with Anni Rossi. Not
unexpected, really - they've got the most intelligently selected and
presented roster in the industry. About the best compliment you can
give to Rossi is that she really does fit there. At 23, she's also got
a whole lot of room for development. We'll see just how far she can
take that viola of hers. Perhaps to hell and back.
Let's pray, though,
that she gives up on looking like a lost character from Twin Peaks in
album artwork - it's so disconcertingly creepy that you'll want to
hide the cover to Rockwell safely out of view, even while listening to
Rossi's music.
 |
ALBUM:
