Rainbow Arabia
Boys and Diamonds
Kompakt [GE]
2xLP + CD / CD / MP3
Release date: 02 28 11
I was really annoyed to see this album in a fairly prominent review used as a signpost for Komapkt’s direction. Not everything is a signpost or needs to be spun into something more than it is.
Rainbow Arabia are a husband and wife duo from LA that make electronic pop with a world music vibe. I sincerely enjoyed ‘Without You’ (the single) and ‘This Life Is Practice’, both drenched in the memory of 1984 and loaded on synths. The afro-Caribbean-whatever percussion persistent throughout this record is refreshing. It sounds great on ‘Blind’ paired with some totally awesome guitar that reminds me of early PIL. Those three work well in the club. The record even closes with their take on The Field’s ‘Sequenced’ which previously appeared on the remix 12” from The Field’s last LP and is the fastest thing on here.
Some of the passages in the middle of this record, though, started to feel like demos. I love the rough edge of the album as a whole however, these parts sounded unfinished. This album suffers as a result. The music on this album is unique, the 3 or 4 hot tracks on here kill it. But it’s really not as wide in scope as I wished for. Still, I was glad to score this disc from Park Ave. CDs last month in Orlando for under $10. 6/10
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