Air
Talkie Walkie (Astralwerks)
by Tim Den
I’ve always liked Air‘s aesthetics: Mellow atmospherics, tender organic instruments, whispery vocals, distinctively French songwriting (Gainsbourg, Brel, etc.), and clever studio know-how bringing the whole pot together. But it wasn’t until Talkie Walkie that I became a full-fleged fan. Whereas the debut, Moon Safari, and the band’s soundtrack to Sofia Coppola’s The Virgin Suicides were both seductive serenades, there was always an element of songness missing from them. On Talkie Walkie, however, it is precisely this element that holds center court, its pulsating heart generating blood for the rest of the components to live off of.
Talkie Walkie is the band’s finest work to date. Between Air and Tahiti 80, I’d say the French make just about the sexiest damn music today.
(www.astralwerks.com)