Pretty & Twisted is a new name on the music scene, but they are not at all newcomers. On the cover, there's Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde fame. And under the cover we find Marc Moreland, founding member and long time guitarist of Wall Of Voodoo. Drummer Danny Montgomery completes this interesting combination. Besides the vocals, Johnette also plays bass, percussions, keyboards and occasionally guitar. To add even more, she also wrote most of the songs, and did the (very fine) production.
After Concrete Blonde split up, Johnette took some time (wandering around and drinking wine in Paris) to think about her life and her music. And she really found inspiration. Granted, there are a few tracks like "Ride!" or "Dear Marlon Brando" that could just as well be by Concrete Blonde, and with the catchy melodies they might well be the singles. But at the soul of the album, there's something quite different. Slow, intense songs, Johnette's non-melodic vocals are underlaid mainly by drums and percussions, Marc's guitars are soaring in the background. The flair for this sparse, but all the more effective, sound might well be something that Marc brought over from his new wave days. The opening track "The Highs Are Too High", "Train Song" or "Don't Take Me Down" are great examples for this unique, atmospheric sound.
The strongest track on the album is "Souvenir". The first part is characterized by a slow bass groove and percussions, leading to a melodic chorus; then drums and distored guitars pick up, the song gains energy, and Johnette's vocals emerge to nearly screaming intensity. On most of the other tracks, like the wonderful version of the Bryan Ferry song "Mother Of Pearls", both music and vocals are much more laid back. But it never gets the least bit boring, the song writing is excellent; the percussive feel and the beautiful vocals give it an almost hypnotic effect. Pretty & Twisted is an impressive album, and very different from most things we get to hear.
