Turzi

Romain Turzi should have learned from Sufjan Stevens' failed 50 states project that these types of undertakings are almost impossible to pull off. The Parisian dance artist follows up debut LP A with B, an album that features ten tracks named after cities that start with the letter… you guessed it! Like his knob-twiddling countrymen, Turzi is obsessed with music's kitsch factor, but rather than chase down the sunshine pop of the '60s that Air and Cassius favour, Turzi injects the blood of '70s arena rock into B. Album opener "Beijing" sounds like Dr. Dre remixing a Deep Purple track, while songs like "Buenos Aires" and "Bogota" allow Turzi to experiment with prog rock's texture and space. But it's numbers like "Baltimore" and "Bamako," featuring guest vocals by Bobby Gillespie (Primal Scream) and Brigitte Fontaine, respectively, that provide B with charisma and character, giving Turzi hope that he'll still sound fresh by the time he records Z.