Tijuana Mon Amour Broadcasting Inc.: Cold Jubilee (of the Snowqueen)
Büro

On its third formal full-length, Dresden-based Tijuana Mon Amour Broadcasting Inc. (drummer Matthias Macht, bassist Heiko Schramm, turntablist Thomas Heil, and Matthias Petzold on keyboards, guitar, and vocals) elaborates upon its relaxed, post-rock persona by adding vocals to its material for the first time. Even calling it post-rock is a bit limiting, however, as the group draws upon genres like jazz, funk, hip-hop, drum'n'bass, and even classical during the album's dozen songs. Led by Petzold's electric and acoustic piano playing, breezy instrumentals like “Follow Me,” the exuberant “Cold Jubilee,” and elegant “88” find the quartet operating like a well-oiled machine. In addition, the laid-book, electric piano vibe of “Dead Bill” becomes all the more irresistible when a sweet flute-like theme briefly announces itself. Tijuana Mon Amour Broadcasting Inc. has sometimes been likened to a German Tortoise and the urgent post-rock pulse and vibes accents in “On Top Of The Mountain” makes clear why. Adding Petzold's vocals to ruminative, jazz-inflected settings like “Day After” and “Time Now,” however, brings the group closer to the stylistic territory inhabited by The Cinematic Orchestra, and the kinship is rendered even more obvious when the lovely string-kissed closer “... Of the Snowqueen” appears.

August 2007