Search - Soul Coughing :: El Oso

The Muse Transforms

DJ ProFusion - WorldFusionRadio.com | Evanston, IL | 02/20/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Bottom Line: "El Oso" solidifies Soul Coughing's status as true musical geniuses. It is a tribute to their talent that they can change their sound yet their music remains immediately recognizable. In Soul Coughing first two albums they had five members: Mark De Gil Antoni, Yuval Gabay, Sebastian Steinberg, M. Doughty, and M. Doughty's Otherworldly Muse. Together these five created what they called "deep slacker jazz" - an eclectic collection of hip rifts and rhythms spiced with the bizarrely creative word play of M. Doughty's Muse. The CDs "Ruby Vroom" and "Irresistible Bliss" featured such witticisms as "he flicked an ash like a wild loose comma" and "the people's republic of lemony fresh" -- the type of lyrics with the emotional feel of an X-Files episode. In Soul Coughing's third album "El Oso," the band seems to have lost its fifth member. Which is not to deny that "El Oso" is a great album, but fans will note with slight disappointment the relative lack of literary wizardly. The lyrics are still much much better than the mindless pablum most bands write today. Still, there are no "buses to Beelzebub," no "white girls raised by the aliens" on "El Oso." The emotional feel is more subdued, but still funky. Doughty has moved on. The message has been received, he has new things to say and he still says them well. Soul Coughing's third album marks a change for the band. Not just in the departure from coffee house poet lyrics. They move away from their simple four-piece acoustic jazz band sound to an amplified, more electronic sound. It is a tribute to their talent that they can change their sound yet their music remains immediately recognizable. "El Oso" has more of a pop feel than "Ruby Vroom" or "Irresistible Bliss" but is still fresh, hip, and jazzy; probably still too different for most radio stations to play it - and too good for most radio stations to play. The songs "Circles" and "St. Louise is Listening" will get some deserving airplay on true progressive radio formats. Those are the two best songs, but there are no bad songs on the CD. "El Oso" solidifies Soul Coughing's status as true musical geniuses and is one of the best albums of 1998. While the band may never again attain the sheer virtuosity of "Ruby Vroom" they nevertheless remain one of the best bands going. Soul Coughing fans will delight in the CD and "El Oso" may attract new fans who like their music with more of a rock flavor.
Great"

These guys were incapable of making a bad album

Christopher Ingalls | Massachusetts | 05/31/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I've been a Soul Coughing fan since 1996, when I purchased "Irresistible Bliss." I loved it. Later I bought "Ruby Vroom." Loved it. I finally broke down and picked up "El Oso" this week and once again, these guys can do no wrong. Their music can be described by the titled of their second album: irresistible bliss. It's difficult music to describe, since it's so unique, but my best description would be Beck meets Devo. M. Doughty has a wonderful gift for creating oddball lyrics that are never cliches and usually hilarious. "El Oso" is a bit more instrumentally spare, less dense, than the band's previous efforts. The bits of unusual sampling are kept more in the background, only to make room for the vocals and those consistently funky SC grooves. "Circles" was apparently the "single" from this disc (I wouldn't know...I never listen to the radio), and it's a great, catchy little number. So far some of my favorite songs are "$300," "So Far I Have Not Found the Science" and "Misinformed," but I'm sure that I will grow to love them all. This is a wonderful disc with grooves, hooks and lyrics that are impossible to get out of your head. A bit more accessible that their previous efforts, but that's certainly not a bad thing. Unfortunately, SC announced their break-up a few months ago. The good thing about that sad news is that they split up LONG before their music became boring. I wish all four members the best of luck. Thanks for the great tunes!"

. . . listeniiiiing-aaaaahhhuuuuhhhh . . .

Rich Latta | Albuquerque, NM - Land of Entitlement | 04/01/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"EL OSO is so cool, so groove-worthy, so tripped-out . . . some songs ("Pensacola," "The Incumbant") rank with the weirdest I've ever heard. So rhythmic yet jazzy, so fun to listen to, you'll put it on again and again. Some might find songs like "Blame" or "Houston" to be so infectious they irritate, but I just find them infectious. There's quite a wide range of strange and diverse sounds on this album - SC laid down a lot of layers, many of them pretty subtle. For this reason in particular, EL OSO is an excellent record to groove to while listening with headphones.



Standouts: "Misinformed," "St. Louise is Listening," "$300" and "Miss the Girl" . . . but baby, it's aaaaall good! Didn't always get the warmest reception from critics because Doughty used to be one of them and they're jealous. Overall, Soul Coughing's most driving, upbeat album. I can't decide which I like most, this one or RUBY VROOM."