The Dø – A Mouthful

Continuing the long tradition of confusing the hell out of people by including non-English characters in their band name, The Dø have also produced probably the weirdest album I've heard in a long time, which takes the form of A Mouthful. Given that the album takes in quite a wide range of styles, and feels quite exhaustive by the end of its 52 minute length, it's rather an apt title, and it's fair to say that unless you're a seasoned explorer of eclectic, left-field music, this will prove a little tough to swallow. That said, there are still at least one or two gems here even for the most straight-and-narrow potential listeners - this partnership of Frenchman Dan Levy and Finn Olivia Bouyssou Merilahti have their fingers in multiple pies, but there's something for everyone even if the whole selection can be a bit sickly if absorbed together. Although the album's second half is home to the highest concentration of oddness, opener 'Playground Hustle' is still quite arrestingly strange. As its title implies, it's a quietly riotous plea from tribes of kids to be able to choose the toys they play with - from there, there are a string of much more conventional songs, like the triumphant sugary pop of 'At Last!' and the more frustrated but string-laden 'On My Shoulders'. These songs are a little formulaic but they display Merilahti's wonderfully rich voice, which has a great deal of versatility. Possibly the best of the more straightforward songs is 'Stay (Just A Little Bit More)', which has a wonderful chorus and a laid-back, almost tropical feel. Not even a couple of bizarre lines, like "in the desert of the bed I tried to find an oasis / but all I found was a dead camel in pieces" and "I knew for sure / he would never be the satisfying shag I needed". Eyebrow-raising indeed, but this girl could tell you she'd shot your gran and you'd let her off, given how sweet she sounds.That track is equalled by the following 'Unissassi Laulelet', which is presumably in Finnish (it ain't in English, that's for sure) and comes with a lovely tribal drum shuffle and a gradually building tempo. It's a brief but major standout moment on the album, and almost marks where things are about to plunge headfirst into the weirder stuff. Soon afterwards we get the frankly bizarre 'Queen Dot Kong' which is a thoroughly surreal slice of what you might call alternative hip hop. If you ever wanted to hear a Finnish woman rap, here's your chance. If you were expecting this album to continue where it left off though, you're likely to find yourself skipping this and its sequel 'Coda'. All in all the second half of the album isn't a patch on the first. 'Searching Gold' is a thoroughly dull, slow excursion, which more or less sets the tone for the remainder of the album's songs (incidentally, look out for the striking similarity between 'Travel Light' and the vocals from 'I Am The Walrus'). Some more quality control would have far improved this, and it would have been stronger if it had been a a oddball pop record through and through, as it had begun to be. But that's never what The Dø set out to do, and you may well applaud them - especially if you're one of the very few people who are likely to fully appreciate the many diverse styles here. The Dø - jacks of all trades, masters of none. 51%The Dø on MySpace