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REVIEWS

CD: Self-Titled

INTERNATIONAL DELIGHT

With its international flavors and smooth production, Alyssa's first solo project comes as a tonic in troubled times. It's music, not dessert, but it goes down as sweet as a S'more, and s'more is what you might find yourself wishing for at the end of this half-album.

Alyssa makes easy, groovy pop and fleshes it out tastefully with African and Indian instruments. "Beats," the third track, is both literally and musically the centerpiece of this five-song collection. A melange of rap, Afropop vocals and Indian beats, it's a minor masterpiece of joyful, easygoing and sophisticated danceability.

Alyssa's voice took me a few minutes to get used to. Its delicate timbre leans toward the baby-girlish. In common Western pop I often find it objectionable when a woman with a real voice consciously babies it up to appeal to some infantile common denominator. Ever heard Britney Spears belting it out on "Star Search"? Why did she have to switch to a robotic whine to become pop's hottest property? And I've never understood the appeal, besides their dance moves, of the Janet Jacksons of the world, who never sing above a whisper.

I know I'm ranting, but it's Alyssa's fault for not making a longer record! I actually am making a point, though. Expand your mind to encompass the (to Western ears) strange and sometimes extreme female voices of Africa, of Chinese opera, of the Bulgarian Women's Choir, of Bollywood, indeed the whole beautiful variety of ways women (and men) make music with their voices the world over, and it's easy to embrace Alyssa's sound. Her roots in musical theater, jazz and soul bear only marginal relevance (aside from their having given her confidence and control) to what she has undertaken with this project.

Alyssa's gently soulful sound calls to mind artists as different as Congo's Lokua Kanza and Australia's Robyne Dunn, but this EP is a highly original musical gumbo. It should be playing on dance floors everywhere. I look forward to hearing Alyssa further push the envelope and give us more of her exotic sugar.

Artist website: WWW.ALYSSAMUSIC.COM

CD: "The Compilation CD - Volume 2"

THE SPICE OF LIFE

It's a pleaure for me, as a Long Island native, to give this compilation a brief write-up here, so I'll get the bad news out of the way first: to a degree, the Island's music scene still has its head stuck in the 80s, and this collection won't pull it fully into the 21st century. But among its great variety of genres, Volume 2 has some worthy, interesting, and even modern stuff.

The first standout track is UniversalDice.com's piano ballad "Man and God." I've followed this band for a little while now, and their creativity has not abated. Then Chaotic Lynk puts a fresh spin on Beck-style grooving with "Everywhere," using some tough rap language while maintaining a light musical touch in the service of their message of tolerance and self-acceptance. Neil Cavanagh's "Forgiveness" takes a page from the Nick Drake book of mellow angst, and Frogg Cafe's "Old Souls" sounds inspired by Steely Dan, but with violin instead of horns. Finally, Jones Crusher's "Naughty Boy" is a funny head-banging anthem that would have made Beavis and Butthead's list of the coolest.

Those, to this listener, are the highlights of this collection. But they are not the only tracks worth a listen. This compilation is a good survey of the great variety of musical creativity to be found in the 21st century in the land of Billy Joel, Leslie West, Stray Cats and Good Rats.

Website: LIMC

Contact: Rich Hughes