Torso

Hipped-up live instrumental "electronic” music always the risk of turning into sugar-free lite jazz, but what saves this disc — indeed what makes it a great disc — are the beats and the attention to melody. Impressive, considering the disc started out as improvisation by the Boston-based players, there are some surprisingly catchy numbers here. It’s easy to imagine this played in overpriced restaurants in trendy parts of big cities, but let’s not hold that against Torso — they’ve just got that easy vibe. This is mainly real instruments — samples take the backseat — that while sounding big and upfront in the mix, could still have been played with their loose feel. The end result is a little like David Holmes or a jazzier Morcheeba, but without the conformism to being chilled — which means it’s music even your mom would like. And, again, try not to hold that against them.