Air
“Pocket Symphony”
Astralwerks Records
Air’s music is exactly what the band’s name connotes: ethereal and breathy, creating something of a dreamland within itself. While in the past that tendency toward dreaminess proved wholly enjoyable, it’s a different story on Air’s fourth album, “Pocket Symphony.”
The French duo, comprised of Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoît Dunckel, have put together tracks for “Pocket Symphony” which nestle under a darker and more dramatic cloud than much of their previous work.
Simple piano or guitar riffs often lay the foundation for the brooding sounds of synthesizers, organs, bass guitars and other instruments to create an electronic ambiance at its core.
“Mayfair Song,” for instance, perfects an enjoyably meandering mood which, like much of Air’s music, seems most appropriate on long walks or aimless car rides. And “Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping,” featuring Neil Hannon on vocals, grows into being both melancholic and enchanting.
But these are two of only a handful of songs on “Pocket Symphony” that find a striking melody or blend of instruments; the other tracks blur together and become relatively indistinguishable from one another.
There are aspects within the music that begin to hook you with repeated listens, though. The pinched vocal lines over sweeping orchestration on “Photograph” at first sound disjointed, but soon become rather sweet and comforting. And “Mer Du Japon,” which features the koto, a Japanese floor harp, is charged and upbeat.
Most intriguing is the band’s distillation of musical styles, a tactic it has embraced throughout its career, ranging from soul to funk to pop.
But the album’s grasp is tenuous. The layers of instruments are balanced and full, but the songs rarely ever do anything interesting with these many layers, making the tracks rather staid and unmemorable.
Such was not the case with the band’s irresistible 1998 debut, “Moon Safari,” which sold 1 million copies worldwide. The music they made at that time still feels fresher and more energized than their latest work.
Though the mood has darkened, the overall sound Air is creating now is not much different than that of “Moon Safari,” and on some of the tracks, Air still works its magic.
But on the remainder of the album, it has worn out its welcome.