Sanmon Gossip - Superficial Gossip

Ringo Shiina is prone to experimentation, but on SUPERFICIAL GOSSIP she decided to stick to what she does best--crooning and screaming her way through a set of pop-jazz numbers. For the most part, SUPERFICIAL GOSSIP is pre-Elvis music, the kind of stuff heard in those black-and-white Hollywood musicals or Ella Fitzgerald records, dominated by brass, sax, acoustic bass, and old-fashioned keyboards rather than guitars and drum loops, although some of those make their way discreetly into the background. In the end, the music is neither loungey enough to relax and drift with it, nor adventurous enough to really thrill the audience; the result isn't bad, but is something of an acquired taste. An additional saving grace is found in the detours--Shiina is too restless to stick to one style throughout, and so she does some techno and rock numbers just to stir things up. Those aren't perfect either but, strangely, they sound more restrained and focused than the "mainstream" part of the record.