Ever wonder what Bonnie & Clyde would have sounded like if they had grown up in the indie rock era? Witness Morton Valence, an eclectic ensemble led by vocalists and multi-instrumentalists Rob Hacker and Anne Gilpin. The subject matter of Bob and Veronica Ride Again is love, love, love. If men really are from Mars and Women really are from Venus, then Morton Valence resonates akin to the finest post Brian Wilson-ian romantic pop purveyors, namely Camera Obscura, Flaming Lips, the Sparks, Stereolab and the like. With a decidedly orchestral bent and a pronounced lounge lizard modus operandi (the twosome tend to sing close to the mic, hence the intimate pretense), Hacker and Gilpin employ every sound known to man, woman and recording engineer, ranging from synthesized samples to a bona fide rhythm section. Hacker ventures into Bono territory with “Funny Peculiar,” yelping “let it rain all over me” atop a rudimentary disco beat. “Bob, Veronica and Some Crickets” emerges as a trippy psychedelic pop venture drenched in echo - shades of Satanic Majesties Request - if you will. The slow blues dirge “Nobody Understands” evokes comparison to a sober Cat Power as bathed with Nelson Riddle’s strings. Love conquers all….ride on!
--Tom Semioli [June 24, 2009]
