Progressive Rock Reviews

And the lights go out in the big city…

There's a very "earthy" feel to what I'm hearing from A3, which is not to say we're getting down to the grassroots of the matter entirely but instead, undercurrents of electronica whisper through the pine needles making the opening track "Too Sick to Pray" something of a post-modern, over the plains and into the heartland ballad that's as unto itself as anything out there right now.

"Mansion on the Hill" places a mechanical rap offering above synth-driven beats and groovy chorus which itself sounds like anything you've heard a million times in the past but can think of not one…

A3 is several different things rolled into one but that said, not your usual expected fare. They've got a light touch in many cases to go with an unruly nature and an ear toward experimentalism… existentialists, maybe, but soulful and quirky all in one breath, absolutely.

Billed as an acid-rock meets house of jazz kind of thing, this British duo first settled on Western shores and was immediately welcomed into the family of The Sopranos, doing their opening theme song, "Woke Up This Morning."

But "La Peste," I can affirm most assuredly takes quite a static departure and more dramatic turn from there. Far from being a two man operation however, A3 incorporates several contributors that greatly enhance their full bodied sound and rarefied blend of styles into a full soundtrack of a dampened and dark record that's both easy to listen to and uncomfortably beyond the scope of humanity.

Combine the work of INX, U2, The Eagles (look for their trippy "Hotel California" cover!), and Chemical Brothers and there you have something of a reference to where this begins; where it ends is yet to be determined.

Released by Columbia Records: http://www.columbiarecords.com/

Review by Vinnie Apicella [va85@columbia.edu]