This new record from Nomo is a deep breath of fresh air. It has grace, grit, fuzz and beats all coexisting in a world without war...at least that's where they're taking me through these headphones. This eight piece group has it's foundation in Detroit with an eye on Africa, which makes perfect sense when you catch the feeling of grimy soul over polyrhythmic drums. They waste no time getting into it with the stormer of an opening track, "Nu Tones(1)." I can't help but wanting MIA to jump in (happens all the time, actually) when I hear the intro to "Fourth Ward(2)." The horn swells and head nods are off the clank right now. I'm feeling some serious Phil Ranelin influence in the overall sound, but definitely in a welcome way. "Reasons(3)" starts off sounding like a Dabrye track (he has remixed their work) and then goes 100% free-range organic without a single second of it sounding forced. Head straight for the late night dancefloor with "If You Want(4)." Even hardened cynics will be celebrating life to this if they've had a few drinks [ed's note: we hardened cynics do not condone this hippie speak, but we'll let it slide cause the Kat is feelin it!]. The most exciting thing to me about this album is that I know they're going to sound even better live, and that's saying a lot considering the energy that producer Warren Defever managed to capture. Also worth noting is that none of these songs were featured on their recent 12". Pick this up and then try to catch them live at a theater near you.

reviewed by Telekinetic Kat