Playboy & Playgirl
On their third full-length American album,The International Playboy and Playgirl Record, DJ Yasuharu Konishi and diva Maki Nomiya patiently escort the listener deeper into the filmic life of the fabulously pop. A resonant, quasi-Stephen Hawking, Japanese-speaking narrator describes the life of "Japan's coolest combo" between tracks, which erupt in exuberant, tambourine-sizzling 1960s French orchestral pop of a purity that reveals a mature P5 sound: these are fully orchestrated tunes rather than DJ pastiche. Konishi plays it straight onInternational Playboy, and to uncanny effect, as the "la-la-la-la" lyrics of "Week End," theCarpenters-ish "I Hear a Symphony," and theSgt. Pepper's-inspired "Magic Twin Candle Tale" sweep the gals through airport lounges with vinyl raincoats swinging over their Nancy Sinatra boots. TheBacharachpop of "Such a Beautiful Girl Like You" and the frugging go-go of "Playboy Playgirl" may be built on sequencers, but they sound so much like live instruments on vinyl that it's creepy. Hard-core turntablists will be disappointed at the lack of variety, but the relentless flow of uptempo horn and string arrangements will be heard at every upscale party and art opening.--Dean Kuipers