Amour Amer

Joel

Electric Monkey Records

There’s a…

Amour Amer

Joel

Electric Monkey Records

There’s a certain type of music you need to get you in the mood – you know, the mood. You’re just sitting there, all alone with your female (or male) companion, and things are getting hot and heavy. Instead of reaching for your Portishead or Massive Attack albums, you reach for Amour Amer by Joel. What you’re in for is not an all-night passionate sex romp; you’re looking at a lukewarm experience that didn’t try hard enough.

This poor man cannot decide whether he likes Latin or French backing styles more, and likes to crisscross them. It’s a valiant effort, but fails to really back his voice. Joel’s voice is definitely his strong point, with soft and gentle whispers that still seem to be wonderfully on-key. The minute you start up the record, it begins with chants that may have you believing that he’s reaching deep to his black roots, but then falls into a lazy number that could have been volumes better.

This 60-minute CD would be a decent pop-soul record, but instead touts itself as “wildly romantic,” and “incredibly sexy.” Now, this is no Marvin Gaye or Al Green by any means, but it still presents itself decently. Under the correct production, this record could have done substantially well, but unfortunately, the backing music destroys any real sexy feel that Joel could have conveyed. Every song has a falling bass riff that sounds like it was ripped off of James Bond movie soundtracks. At times, his songs are strong enough to light a few candles and pour some Chardonnay, but at the next turn, you dump it out, blow out the candles and sit in front of the television for better entertainment.

“Carnal Manners” definitely ruins any mood that Amour Amer had going for it so far, and is only the third song deep into the 14-song endeavor. Also, a note of advice to Joel: singing in French at random times will not increase your sex appeal. Also, he should have refrained from covering a song that feels nothing like the original – “Femme Fatale,” which sounds more like a half-assed and drawn-out version of the original than like the delightfully beautiful rocker by the Velvet Underground. Besides, does this song really have any good reason to be on a “sexy” album?

All in all, if you’re expecting a pop album in the style of say, Macy Gray, you might be in for a real treat. The vocals are good, and his lyrics are halfway decent- except when he attempts to throw in forced French phrases in order to increase appeal- and it’s even an hour in length. Unfortunately, when you read that this album is supposed to be bodaciously sexy, your expectations are anything but low. Keep swerving to the Sneaker Pimps or Bjork or whatever gets you in the mood – it is seriously doubtful that there will be any horizontal mamboing going on while this CD is playing.