Alice and the Serial Numbers

The debut album and release from brand new indie label Alice Musik by Alice and the Serial Numbers features quirky, kitschy electronic music by a young producer from Montreal, simply named Alice, and her synth gear. I was tempted to dismiss this initially because the samples are rather generic-sounding, as if taken from the preset sounds that come with any synthesiser. Moreover, the sounds have a high kitsch factor.But after listening to tunes like "Lopopovas," "Nemosonik" and "Octopus," I realised that despite the kitsch, Alice manages to rock, and rock in the way that Beck does - where a quirky seductiveness sets in. Alice has a strong sense of melodic composition, one where it's not so much the sounds she uses as how she uses them. Granted, she is no sonic sculptress. One gets the sense that Alice could have easily substituted a conventional rock set-up to compose her tunes, yet Mission_1 is more fun, in a cheesy '80s video game soundtrack sort of way. I suppose the mission on this CD is to set aside your sophisticated notions of electronic savvy and listen to it strictly from a fun, melodic standpoint. Alice also runs a sophisticated online boutique and music store that currently features Alice-only material such as music and clothing.