'Talkie Walkie' a breath of fresh 'Air'

By Jeff Renfro

Air's recently released "Talkie Walkie" marks a return to the style that made them an underground hit, but leaves room for plenty of new experimentation. "Talkie Walkie" might be the best chill-out album since Groove Armada's "Back to Mine." The duo continues to craft electronic songs with catchy pop melodies at their core.

Air (JB Dunckel and Nicolas Godin) scored a hit with their 1998 debut release "Moon Safari." The album featured the almost annoyingly catchy track "Sexy Boy," which was hailed as one of the most creative singles in years. The album also featured the single "Kelly Watch the Stars" which inspired what is probably the greatest music video ever made. The band went on to score Sofia Coppola's 2000 debut, "The Virgin Suicides," which allowed the band to relax their already laid-back techniques. Unfortunately for Air, 2001s "20,000 Hz Legend" was avoided by fans. The album is considered to be a failure by just about everyone, lowering the expectations for "Talkie Walkie."

"Talkie Walkie" marks two firsts for the group. They enlisted Nigel Godrich (Radiohead, Beck) to help with the production on a few tracks, marking the first time that the duo have not done all of their own production work. Second, they do most of their own singing on this album. This could be due to a new confidence in their singing abilities, or possibly because many artists were scared off by the failure of "20,000-"

Fans of "Moon Safari" will be pleased with the sound of this album. The group creates a sound that is completely their own, but manage to avoid the self-indulgency that marred their last record. They stick to the simple formula of creating traditional pop songs, and then slowing them down and adding electronic bells and whistles.

The album's standout track is the opener, "Venus." The song is built around a simple, slow piano part which is supported by hand claps. The ode to unconditional love opens with the lyric, "You could be from Venus/ I could be from Mars/ We will be together/ Lovers forever." The song sounds like the intro to an arena rock anthem, but its small scale allows it to maintain an adorable charm.

The strangest track on the album has to be "Run." If Hitchcock were still alive and made a movie, he would use "Run" in the opening credits. The track exhibits the clear influence of Godrich. Opening with electronic skitterings, the song features organ chords that sound like the noise a retro-futuristic laser would make. The slightly modified, French-accented voice that enters makes the song even stranger, but goes with all of the other elements so well.

Air will never be accused of being fast, loud, or even that interesting. They just continue to craft perfect pop songs that they bend and mold into something that is clearly recognizable as their own.

Grade: B+

û Contact Jeff Renfro at (408) 554-4546 or jrenfro@scu.edu.