PIERROT LUNAIRE

Avant-folk group Pierrot Lunaire prove on their debut album that "avant" doesn't have to mean "dissonant" or "ugly". Tempering their electronic experimentations with gentle acoustic folk melodies, there are points where their debut becomes placid to the point of being tedious - I'm not sure Narciso really needed to be as long as it is, for instance - but when the album comes alive and the synths blare forth there's hints of something more exciting. Still, they're only hints, and on balance the album suggests musical directions which could be interesting to explore more than it actually thoroughly explores them. Later albums from the group would be tighter and more together.