Cornelius/Fantasma

The Beck comparisons are inevitable. Cornelius, like Mr. Hansen, has the mix-and-match bug, a penchant for willfully reworking a wide array of sounds ranging from cartoon soundtracks, Nintendo noises, '60s pop, polka, hip-hop, country music and indie rock. But unlike Beck and other recombinant maestros like Cornershop or the Prodigy, whose genre-hopping skills come on crafty but cold, "Fantasma" has a deeply organic, almost soothing feel to it, the shifting tides of sound surprising, but never jarring. The rich harmonies and loping beats of "Clash" and "Star Fruits Surf Rider" give way to rollicking guitar vamps like "New Music Machine," "Free Fall" or "Count Five or Six," which perfectly melds punkish aggression with technoid samples and count-offs. Natural sounds pervade the la-la-la's and gleeful acoustic strums: cats mewling, birds chirping and Cornelius' own sweet voice, modestly intoning with a full-bodied spirituality.


-Sharps & Flats

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