Apart from a few current lyrical references, witty, idiosyncratic pop songs like "It Doesn't Have to Be That Way," "The Mona Lisa's Packing, Leaving Late Tonight," and "Not That Well-Defined" could've come out at any point in their career. Their 26th album, The Girl is Crying in Her Latte finds Ron and Russell, who are 77 and 74 respectively, sounding sharp as ever, mixing synthpop, glam and classical elements for tales of modern ennui, filtered through their twisted sense of humor and love of cinema. The band have been back in the public eye in the last few years, the most spotlight they've seen since the mid-'70s, thanks to two films - Edgar Wright's wonderful documentary The Sparks Brothers and Annette, their rock opera collaboration with director Leos Carax - and have found themselves back on Island Records, the label that released their two 1974 classics, Kimono My House and Propaganda, among others. Has any group maintained an image, sound and level of quality across 50 years as well as Sparks? Ron and Russell Mael were weirdo geniuses right out of the gate and have seen popular culture ebb and flow around their distinct brand of tongue-in-cheek operatic rock, while never trying to make music based on what was in at the time. ALBUM OF THE WEEK: Sparks - The Girl is Crying in Her Latte (Island)įifty years and 26 albums into their career, Ron & Russell Mael remain as wonderfully weird and amazing as ever
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