Album Review: Black Foliage:Animation Music, Vol. One by Olivia Tremor Comtrol

Long live concept albums! The Olivia Tremor Control, a loose group of musical misfits based in Athens, Georgia, manage to start off with everything that's wrong with concept albums and end up with everything that's right. First, begin with the pretentious, overly intellectual premise: the OTC set out to create an audible representation of dreams within music that pulses "with the rhythms of modern life." Next, toss in some unnecessarily complex musical tampering: a bass line from one original song is altered for various other songs whose remaining components are then manipulated and layered on top of other tracks. The result: a melodic game of musical chairs with incestuous rhythms scattered across the album's 27 tracks. Ranging from spacey ambient musings to Bowie-damaged indie pop, it all manages to work. Each listen reveals a new depth to the construction. The less focused interludes last just long enough to make you appreciate the hooks when they finally do snag hold. The Olivia Tremor Control, like their more normal friends Neutral Milk Hotel, manage to make a strange and beautiful album with enough complexity for the biggest music snob and enough fun for the casual listener.