JEANS TEAM MUSIC VON OBEN ALBUM PLUXEMBURG, PLAYGROUND RELEASE: APRIL 25, 2005 REVIEW: MAY 13, 2005

Jeans Team largely exhibit the same kind of geekiness that has propelled their label owners Pluxus through a string of increasingly annoying releases. But they also have a knack for catchy songwriting, something which sadly ultimately brings “Musik von Oben” down. Because while I enjoyed the upbeat silliness of “Oh Bauer” as a single track, it’s decidedly harder to take when surrounded by similarly perky fare, like the awful “Königin”.
What rescues the album from the depths of ruin is rather the calmer tracks toward the end. The shimmering “Boat Music” where saxophones are allowed to co-exist with melancholic electronics, and the brief but beautiful “1482” both reward multiple listens.

KRISTOFFER NOHEDEN