The Drunken Dance of Modern Man in Love

Chronique

A murky, electronic landscape is mapped out at the beginning of The Drunken Dance of Modern Man in Love on "Prelude/Primer," evoking an orchestra warming up for an evening concert in deep space. It's a fitting introduction that feeds easily into the strange, surrealistic sound of Chris Robley's music. "Culture Jammer" features an entrancing electronic backdrop made even more intriguing by the addition of a strange array of horns and banjos along with pervasive percussion. Even Robley's vocals have been squeezed and entranced by electronic trickery, adding yet another element to the varied soundscape. The wash of sound along with the processed vocals so completely fill the sonic space that it is easy to ignore the lyrics themselves. While it is difficult to predict how a heavily produced album will sound -- fresh or over-produced -- in six months, Robley, who wrote all the lyrics and music here, has a solid sense of melody and knows how to deliver a catchy hook. This transforms a surrealistic dream like "A Vague Notion of Nothing Much" into a song embedded with a solid sense of popcraft. It is also nice that Robley can switch from the big sound of "Little Love Affairs" to a mellow instrumental like "Gaslight Girl" before delving into a ballad like "Centaurea." The Drunken Dance of Modern Man in Love is an unusual, evocative album, both musically varied and tuneful.

© Ronnie D. Lankford, Jr. /TiVo