World of Fireworks Review by Susan Bachner

This is the second in a set of carefully produced and articulately arranged albums, with a detached, dreamlike feel. The tuba once again figures prominently in the tightly designed brass, percussion, and accordion arrangements. As on the previous album, On the Blank Generation, there is a variety of musical styles here. They vary in genre from klezmer to Latin to ’60s lounge jazz to traditional circus ring music. (A contemporary remake of La Strada well might cull a tune for its background from this album.) This is not pop music in the traditional emotional, self-confessional vein. Few personal stories are told. Although at times it seems that personal metaphors are hinted at in some of the songs, interpretations of them seem difficult to make. However, World of Fireworks will appeal to those who enjoy more detached but clever fare. These songs abound with puns, plays on words, and pastiches of visual images on a theme, even more so than on the previous album. For instance, “Buccaneer Days” evokes pictures of pirating and looting, complete with a Gilbert & Sullivan-like bridge where the pirates brag of their accomplishments. “Nero’s Song” gives us a series of souvenirs of Rome (“Saturnalia, Tarantella…”), reminding us that Nero fiddled while the whole thing burned down. Overall, a distinctive effort in a musical area not often trodden by others.