CORDOVAN & MAYONAISE

The label known as LunaticWorks has never disappointed me. I dug Horse Noodles and Tha Fruitbat quite a bit, so I was excited to get two new CDs from them in the mail. And they must be doing pretty well, as both of the new discs are releasing on the same day.

First up is Cordovan with his self-titled release. Based out of Los Angeles, Cordovan is the product of multi-intstrumentalist/producer Greg Reeves. The press release sums up this album pretty well, calling Cordovan\'s unique sound \"future jazz\". And that\'s exactly what it is. It\'s soft and smooth, concentrating on the pauses just as much as the beats, as what is not going on in the music is just as important as what is. \"Magma\" opens the disc with thick bass and some sexy horn work layered beneath it all. \"Blue Goo\" is a taste of funky break beat, bouncing and bobbing through the air with a playful nature. \"Fun With Sophie\" is a laid-back and somewhat creepy tune that mixes piano and keyboard with a sultry bass backup. If autumn had a theme, \"Fun With Sophie\" would be it. \"Sidewinder\" is a poppy mix of more noises than you can audibly separate. And then you have the three most interesting tracks on the album: \"Lacuna I\", \"Lacuna II\", and \"Lacuna III\". Each track is under a minute in length, but there is more beautiful layering and mixing going on in those mere seconds than most albums have in their entirety. I\'d love to see Cordovan do an entire album in the vein of the \"Lacuna\" work. So, in all, if you\'re into sexy production and smooth beats-- kind of like what you might hear in the lobby of a place like The Standard or the like-- then Cordovan is waiting for you.

Next up is Mayonnaise. Mayonnaise is a trio of three guys you may have heard of: Howie B, Crispin Hunt, and Will O\'Donovan. All three are already well-respected in the world of music, so they thought they\'d take that influence and try their hands at a collaborative piece. And the outcome is pretty good. At times, this self-titled disc does get a bit too \"Eighties retro\"-tasting for me, but that\'s my only real beef with the disc. That aside, the disc ranges from more quiet and soft work (\"Blueberry\") to very meaty and heavy arrangements (\"Because Of The Weather\"). \"Time\" is digital instrumental perfection, well-paced and thought out in its delivery to the senses. And \"Winter Song\" closes out this disc with fun energy and great mixing work; this track sounds like it may have been left off of the Trainspotting soundtrack. If you\'re into any of the previous work of the trio (Hunt\'s Longpigs or O\'Donovan\'s 7 Towers), Mayonnaise is for you. Or, if you\'re a fan of electronic Brit pop and are willing to take a chance and my word for it, go out and shove some Mayonnaise into your ears.

So, LunaticWorks is now four for four in my book. I can\'t wait to see what they do next.