Search - Brave Combo :: Mood Swing Music

A Delicious Collection for the Open-Minded

Sir Charles Panther | Alexandria, Virginny, USandA | 02/20/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A thoroughly enjoyable CD for any music lover, this is a fantastic collection of leftovers and extras, some released, some appearing for the first time. The twenty tracks range from traditional Mexican ballads ("Sombras Nada Mas") to Tex-Mex ("Besos Besitos") to classical (Strauss' "Tales From the Vienna Woods") to polkas, cha chas, rock/pop, Japanese Ondo, and the just plain strange (Tiny Tim interpreting the Beatles' "Girl" and Japanese Ondo Kikusuimaru singing "Volare"). This being said, this is all great music, fun stuff, fun to dance to, sing along with, and just listen to, even at work, although your coworkers will look at you real funneh-like.



First of all, I've got to say that I'm no polka fan. Didn't like it when I was a kid. Didn't like it when I was a teenager, later a college-age punk, and still don't like polka now that I'm a bona fide grownup with kids and insurance policies. But I like Brave Combo, a lot. I've got five of their releases, and plan on getting more. This band is more than a polka band, but I'm just not sure how I'd describe them. Experimental. Divergent. Interesting. Brave.



"Three Ducks" is the theme running through the CD. It's an original Brave Combo piece, and they include four arrangements, waltz, polka, Ondo, and cha cha. I go for the Ondo version, with the cha cha version coming in a close, totally lounge-a-rrrific second.



Then there's the haunting "Burn Slow." One of the last places I'd expect to find a dark, soulful kind-of-torch song would be on a Brave Combo release, but here it is. It's a great, powerful, spooky tune, with a wonderful Middle-Eastern influenced intro, best listened to in the dark. It's gotten me to look for the Lauren Agnelli CD the band cites in the liner notes.



The liner notes also draw you into "Skin." This is one of those songs you hum along to until after listening a dozen or so times you actually start to pick up on the words: "Skin could be reminiscent of Harry Truman . . . covers up animals and humans . . . normally animal skin is thick, in humans it's comparatively thin . . . a tear in skin can make animals and humans sick . . .skin covers up animals and humans." The liner notes mention influence from poetry featured in a men's nursing home newsletter from Massachusetts, so now I've got a fun new Internet research project.



I very much enjoy "Walking Stick," the rockin' ode to the insect of the same name. Also good is "Come Back to Sorrento," a rearranged Italian ballad. Great sort of lounge-lizardy disco mix. And of course, the Tiny Tim version of "Girl." I've got this track already and so, so much more on the Brave Combo/Tiny Tim CD of the same name. I strongly recommend this one for any Brave Combo fan.



More than anything, this album opens doors. The styles are all over the place, so are the subjects, the lyrics, the arrangements, and the melodies. All are enjoyable, and at least half of the songs have pushed me to look into other styles and artists. This is the beauty of this release; it's an entryway into music and art that's out there, in other places, waiting to be found by the adventurous and open-minded. Strongly recommended."

These people bring new meaning to electic

J. W. Bradford | Boston, MA | 05/27/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Having seen Brave Combo a number of times live and bought just about everything they've done, don't for a minute thing I'm unbiased. On the other hand if you like people who take what is common and make it startlingly new these guys do it better than most."