Auto Da Fe use a number of exotic instruments with pleasant, albeit mostly straightforward results. The singing, however, immediately reminded me of class field trips to the Renaissance Fair, an association I unfortunately couldn’t shake throughout the course of the album.
Despite their attempts to evoke Eastern lands, this medieval European connotation is especially apparent to me on songs such as “Past Times,” “Child of Typhoon,” “Amanda Blaine,” and “Neptune Society Ball.” Sometimes, like on “Little Alili,” “Ne’er Do Will” and “Bao Ba Cha,” I liked the music but couldn’t get past the stagnant vocal melodies. This was particularly disappointing on “Ne’er Do Will,” since the music itself is some of the most transportive on the album. The best vocals are found on “Huaf Weishenme,” because the approach differs slightly from the others, but it’s too little too late.
Almost by default, I prefer the album’s instrumentals, although some of them have a faux-ethnic quality I just couldn’t swallow. “Mao Mcow” and the title track are played well, though ultimately sound too Western to be convincing. “Just Now” has propulsive energy that’s undermined by random shouts that I assume are supposed to be encouraging, but took me out of the song. In contrast I enjoyed all of “Sophie” quite a bit, a piece which sounds like something to be played at a Sicilian mobster’s funeral and isn’t like anything else on the album.
I appreciate the fact that the group’s trying to do something different, but too often their attempts sound forced or naïve. Rather than trying to bring together so many disparate styles, they might do better by exploring one or two in depth.
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