Weather Pending : And How!

<img src="http://www.qromag.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/weatherpendingandhow.jpg" alt=" " />The sunny, breezy vibe of Weather Pending delivers smart sketches of love and life without crossing over into the unholy landscape of adult contemporary shibboleth....
6.0 Ripe Fruit
2009 

Weather Pending : And How!Don’t listen to this album with a smart aleck sitcom teenager in the room – you will be teased without mercy.  This is an album for adults who have since retired their teen angst, or at least dispatched it on paid-furlough.  The sunny, breezy vibe of this soulful indie-electrojazz trio cuts through the fog of their native San Francisco to deliver smart sketches of love and life without crossing over into the unholy landscape of adult contemporary shibboleth.  Not an easy trick, but Weather Pending pulls it off with aplomb.

In songs like “Timeless” and “Tide,” lead songstress Janie Oliver demonstrates a calm, cool vocal-styling reminiscent of Dido, or Natalie Merchant; in “Electricity” and “Complicated Two,” the nimble, unhurried fretwork of Brian Bloi drops notes like a sad summer rainfall; and the all-important jazz bass and percussion of Rob Cross gives the entire album a phresh, phunky phlow in the vein of Luscious Jackson.

And How wasn’t designed to be a sonically challenging album: that’s both its strength and weakness.  These songs shamelessly transport you to a tropical island, Corona in hand; or to your favorite downtown coffee shop, midwinter, sipping a triple, half-caff mochaccino; or wherever you would rather be.  “And How” would be Iggy Pop’s album of choice after he had just fallen through a plate glass window chasing the white tiger.  In other words, Weather Pending has put together a decadent delight that is as pleasant to listen to as a moped is fun to ride.  Life is hard already.  We don’t always have to listen to music that tells us things we don’t need, or don’t want, to know.  Even if that pale 15-year old in the Marilyn Manson t-shirt wouldn’t understand.

MP3 Stream: "Tide"

{audio}/mp3/files/Weather Pending – Tide.mp3{/audio}

 

– Mike Gutierrez
[email protected]

Categories
Album Reviews
  • Anonymous
    at
  • No Comment

    Leave a Reply

    Album of the Week