the bird and the bee

The Bird and the Bee's new album Ray Guns Are Not Just the Future is caught between the past and the present. It attempts to capitalize on pop music's newfound nostalgia for jazz and soul while also employing contemporary production flair, with mixed results. Their arrangements are silky smooth, with coy vocals and instrumentation reminiscent of a Bond theme song. Yet, they lack substance.

The album's true opener, "My Love," is unaffecting and simple, but easy to listen to, a complaint that applies to the whole album. Several of the songs have interesting spoken-word interludes that harken back to 1930s jazz standards. The music is well-rooted within the jazz tradition and exhibits the genre's strengths as well as its weaknesses.

Inara George's vocals play it a bit too cool and come off as uninterested and dispassionate; she is sultry but bland.

The title track, "Ray Gun," does have some interesting layered vocals and alien sound effects reminiscent of the Flaming Lips', both of which suit the song well. The bridge is stripped down and sparse, effectively contrasting the rest of the song.

"Birthday" is their most genuine track, partly because the vocals are more vulnerable here than elsewhere on the record, but also as a result of the strong chorus that isn't drowned out by the instrumentation.

The Bird and the Bee's new album will appeal to the Feist, Jem and Fiona Apple crowd, belonging to a genre of jazz-pop that has unfortunately been delegitimized by massive Starbucks CD sales.

Would you be judged for listening to this album? Probably. Is it worth being judged for? Probably not. Then again, if you're not self-conscious about your music taste, Ray Gun may reward your persistence.