Working within the parameters of the traditional four-piece rock outfit, Seattle's
Sushirobo creates warm, analog quirk pop.
The Light-Fingered Feeling of Sushirobo sounds more 1978 than 2003, with wobbly melodies, strange guitars, and simple, driving
Neu! beats. Think
Devo, think
Wire, think
Pere Ubu. Tracks like "Last Call" have a candy-colored, retro-futuristic sheen matched with a propulsive electricity. Even odder is the fact that these robotic funk tunes (like "New Laboratory Assistant," which would fit nicely in a vintage Godzilla flick) were built almost entirely from experimentation and improvisation sessions without any electronics. Over the course of the entire album, the sound can become a little homogeneous, and songs like "Community Theater" are more than a little monotonous, but overall,
The Light-Fingered Feeling of Sushirobo is a unique and inventive album that sounds unlike most music being made today. ~ Charles Spano