Album Review

Adam Green & Binki Shapiro – Adam Green & Binki Shapiro

• 26th Jan 2013

This is quite a tame little creature, this progeny of ex-Moldy Peaches singer-songwriter Adam Green and vocalist and multi-musician Binki Shapiro of Little Joy. A mildly pleasant wee thing that occasionally shows some bite.

The pairing’s self-titled album of duets is extremely heavy on the Sixties stylings – to the point that, rather than exhibiting the influence of those swinging sounds, it seems merely to reproduce them. However, Green and Shapiro’s jointly written lyrics – apparently created while both were experiencing the not-so-nice side of love – contrast ironically with the music in a way that gives this offering a much-needed touch of bitterness.

The opening and closing songs of the album are its strongest – ‘Here I Am’ is deceptively simple and contagious, and marries the sweet heights of Shapiro’s voice with the sonorous lows of Green’s perfectly. And closing track Nighttime Stopped Bleeding veritably clangs along in an enjoyably dark and scary manner.

Everything in the middle is a bit, well, middling. It’s all nicely produced, the vocals are skilfully varied, and the lyrics are intelligent and interesting. But the music lacks anything crackingly original. This is an album that will slink onto your lap like a Sixties sex kitten and purr for a while – which is perfectly nice – but only when it gets its claws out every now and again will you really notice it.

Venue: Adam Green & Binki Shapiro
Support Band: Rounder