Ten Minute Turns

Ten Minute Turns is really a two-headed animal ? guitarist Alan Foreman and bassist Roger Mason wrote, arranged, recorded, and produced the songs together ? and I think that helps make Sad Animals a consistently winning listening experience: they trade vocals off and on, often in the same song; they both have a great ear for melodies and hooks; and they've got a playful, everything-often-including-the-kitchen-sink attitude about sound that comfortably blends classic indie-rock, post-punk, drone-rock, and unabashed pop into a cohesive idea.

The album's percussion is consistently interesting ? drums are enhanced with hand-claps, finger-snaps, jittery cymbal flourishes, and sometimes the rhythm section sounds like Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids were backing them up, like they raided a junkyard and banged on metal trash cans and empty pipes. The production is really playful, too: be sure to give the disc a spin with headphones on ? some of the more subtle things they do with drum loops and sound effects get magnified with the buds in.

The album's highlights are many: ?C.A.R.L.? is a delightfully quirky pop tune built on a foundation of melodica and Casio-keyboard rhythms that features a fantastic, soaring chorus; ?Since You Haven't Been Around? is a building, muscular rock song, complete with singalong ?oh, oh?'s in the chorus; ?Calm? nicely recalls Modern English's ?Melt With You,? with its' heavy synths and acoustic strums; and ?Made Up Dreams? starts out quietly before building into a booming, anthemic, sturm-und-drang chorus. My two favorites on the album are title track ?Sad Animals,? a bouncy pop tune with a crashing rhythm section, wild horn accompaniment, and a catchy-as-heck chorus, and album closer ?Wolf in the Water,? a quiet, moody ballad that grows into a beautiful, epic crescendo and features some gorgeous vocal harmonizing.

.... Give Sad Animals a try ? you'll be hard-pressed to have more fun with an unsigned band this year.

- forepac.com