In some cases, an artist's name lets you know exactly what type of music to expect. If a group's name contains terms like i-tal, Jah Rastafarai, or natty dread, it's safe to assume that reggae is involved -- and if a group has a name like La Charanga Sabrosa, expect something Afro-Cuban. Someone who calls himself MC Thug Dog is likely to be a gangsta rapper, and if a band has a twisted name like Satanic Cadaver, there's probably some death metal involved. But some names can be misleading, or at least very ironic.
Boy-Girl Band is the sort of name one would expect from alternative pop/rock, Europop, or teen pop -- perhaps something with college rock or indie rock appeal, or perhaps a group that could be described as
Britney Spears and
Hilary Duff by way of
*NSYNC and
the Backstreet Boys. But
Drop Your Leotards! isn't pop in any way, shape, or form;
Boy-Girl Band's focus is avant-garde jazz -- specifically, avant-garde jazz of the AACM variety. This quartet calls itself
Boy-Girl Band because there are two males (bassist Doug Anderson and drummer
Art Lande) and two females (saxophonist Jayn Pettingill and pianist Emily Takahashi), and they get a lot of their inspiration from
Anthony Braxton,
Roscoe Mitchell,
Joseph Jarman, and other AACM artists.
Drop Your Leotards! isn't the sort of dense, harsh, blistering free jazz one associates with
Charles Gayle or post-1965
John Coltrane;
Boy-Girl Band's outside playing is reflective rather than in your face, and while
Cecil Taylor has influenced Takahashi, she isn't nearly as confrontational. Although mostly instrumental, this 2003 session includes some detours into spoken word. Much of the spoken word in avant-garde jazz is very spiritual, but
Boy-Girl Band prefers goofy, off-the-wall humor.
Drop Your Leotards! is well worth checking out if one appreciates the AACM school of avant-garde expression. ~ Alex Henderson