French musician Naim Amor is a denizen of Tucson, Arizona’s vibrant music scene. This is his second volume of Soundtracks music, the first he’s released on Howe Gelb’s OwOm label. It’s a delightful and quirky instrumental recording that blends jazz, lounge and experimental rock in what Naim calls “avant-French pop.”
It opens with the loping, swinging “When They Were Happy,” its sunny melody carried in turn by vibes, melodica and guitars, with a sampled loop from Stereolab stuck into the mix. “Le Tropicana Club” opens with a samba tattoo on the conga drums, which is then overridden by a straight four-beat rhythm on the trap set, setting a schizo mood that’s only highlighted by the use of theremin, which takes over the melody line from the guitar and melodica. The loopy quavers and squeals of the theremin and the staggered rhythm suggest a tropical paradise being invaded by the harsh, measured rhythms of the urban street.
“Breakfast at Datura” was a joint composition by several of the contributors to Naim’s recording, including Calexico drummer John Convertino, who lends his stylish and creative drumming to this cut. A very French-sounding tune on the melodica suggests musette, while the looped bass and indistinct sounds of voices in the background further the impression of a live performance at a quiet sidewalk cafe. Ambient noises also enter into “Dawn,” with birdsongs at the beginning and a scratchy old record of “Stardust” fading in and out; languidly plucked guitar and tinkling vibes suggest an Indonesian gamelan on this one.
“Tap Room” features an electric jazz guitar swapping melody lead with a trumpet, breaking briefly into a sweeping Philly-soul arrangement with phat bass and chiming synthesizer.
There are as many different sounds on Soundtracks, Volume II as there are genres of movies, it seems. “Stuck” features big Spaghetti-western style electric guitars. “Jon Le Flambeur” has a spy-movie melody played on electric guitar, backed by rapping drums and congas, and contrapuntal melody lines played by trumpets on left and right channels. “Generique” has a slow, Valley of the Dolls style intro, followed by a bluesy guitar-and-harmonica outro. And “Vire De L’Ortf” is a bizarre upbeat number with Norman Luboff-type sampled vocals, and lots of melodica and theremin noodling. There are more moans, chirps and whistles from the theremin, plus a glockenspiel, on the lovely, minor-key “Ballad of Gabrielle,” another track featuring Convertino’s drumming. The only non-original track is John Coltrane’s “Naima,” a classy bit of cool jazz that is briefly ripped apart by Naim’s distorted guitar riffs.
The enhanced CD includes three home-made videos in the QuickTime format, to the tunes of “Le Tropicana Club,” “Vire de L’Ortf” and “Tap Room.”
Martin Denny fans should definitely check this one out, as should anyone looking for music from off the beaten track. Offbeat but accessible, Naim Amor’s Soundtracks, Volume II is one of the most purely original releases of the year.
(OwOm, 2004)
