Psapp The Camel’s Back

[Domino; 2009]

Styles: indie-pop with a hint of jazz flavoring, bossa nova
Others: Stereolab, CocoRosie, of Montreal, The Moldy Peaches

British duo Psapp, best known stateside for providing the opening theme to Grey's Anatomy, has a lot going for them. Their fusion of jazz and bossa nova rhythms with modern indie rock sensibilities is intriguing. Like CocoRosie, Psapp has a penchant for folding unorthodox noises into their songs, but unlike CocoRosie, they do so without completely disrupting the melody. Even though I can fit the band into a certain frame of reference, they never sound like a shallow imitation of anyone else. On paper, it all sounds fantastic. So, why is my first instinct to put The Camel's Back on the shelf and never listen to it again?

Well, like many promising bands, it's Psapp's vocals that fail to close the deal. The problem is not with singer Galia Durant's voice, but with her style. On most songs, she keeps the material at arm's length, favoring a delivery that's cool and detached. This stance is appropriate to the glitchy jazz-pop mélange that she and bandmate Carim Classmann are trying to create, but it also prevents the listener from fully embracing the songs. Thus, perfectly fun tracks like “Part Like Waves” and “Somewhere There Is a Record of Our Actions” fall flat because the listener doesn't get the chance to make an investment in them.

Nothing underscores this failing more than those few tracks where Durant actually wakes up a bit. Lead single “The Monster Song” finds her mustering enthusiasm enough to match the sparse, swinging melody. It's such a subtle difference, but enough to propel the song to pop greatness. Similarly affecting is the more somber “Screws,” where she perfectly encapsulates the melancholy of Classmann's minimalist piano accompaniment.

The most compelling song, however, is album closer “Parker.” In pure, jazzy bounce, it's right up there with Louie Prima's famous contribution to Disney's The Jungle Book. The constantly evolving pitter-patter percussion, the brash outbursts from the trumpet, and finally a chorus worthy of an old standard: “Oh well I watch you/ To see what you can do/ And though I'm trying/ There is no pleasing you.” It's both the most memorable and spontaneous-sounding song on the whole album. But that raises the question: How much greater would it have been if Galia Durant had really cut loose on this one, if she had fully relaxed the tight reign she keeps on her emotions?

I guess it's a question that will have to remain unanswered for now. A little more feeling would have gone a long way towards elevating The Camel's Back into memorable territory. As it stands, whatever magic the album might have mustered has been smothered in the womb.

1. I Want That
2. Part Like Waves
3. The Camel's Back
4. Fickle Ghost
5. The Monster Song
6. Somewhere There Is a Record of Our Actions
7. Marshrat
8. Fix It
9. Mister Ant
10. Screws
11. Homicide
12. Parker

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