“mondo_crescendo”
Mondo Crescendo
Young, Naked & Very With It
Blackbean & Placenta/Darla
The Mondo Crescendo got a firm grip on my necktie and shook me around with “Check It On Out,” the opening track on a recent Darla Records compilation. A sunny, upbeat tune that brings to mind open blue skies and bouncing down the sidewalk in brightly colored clothes, the song clearly captured the Mondo Crescendo’s top-shelf pop perfectionism. Vocalist Jennifer Taylor’s smooth croon lays on top of the gorgeous arrangements (also by Taylor) like the finest made-from-scratch chocolate icing. The aforementioned “Check It On Out” has a horn section straight out of Motown, blaring in the chorus while Taylor coyly recounts misadventures in the verse. “Just Kiss Me” is as tartly sweet as fresh-squeezed lemonade on a lawnmower day, plus its melody reminds me of that haunting closing bit from “Video Killed The Radio Star.”
This is a grinner of an album, a happily assembled collection of songs, melodies and surprises. A must-have for all pop conosciengti.
