*** dEUS

IN A BAR, UNDER THE SEA

(Island)

Anyone can slap together a collage and call it eclectic, but few can turn disparate elements into a unified whole. The Antwerp-based quintet dEUS push the mixmaster approach as far as it can go, managing to be both challenging and listener-friendly. In a Bar begins with an all-out assault on the senses: a lo-fi acoustic blues rant followed by a sampled sound bite advising listeners to "be your own dog" interrupted by a James Brown break beat and then invaded by a grunge guitar crunch. A funk bass-and-guitar groove leads into a call-and-response rap/shout with a falsetto soul chorus, then into a middle section of synth dance pop. Then they do it all over again.

"Opening Night," overlays two different pop melodies by two very different singers, with interwoven guitar and piano lines. "Theme from Turnpike" uses a Mingus bass sample, Beefheartian vocals, James Bond guitar/horn/string arrangements, Latin percussion, and free-roaming sax to create something both eerie and warm -- not far from Tom Waits at his best. You can also hear pop punk ("Memory of a Festival") and whispery cabaret jazz ("Nine Threads"). In short, a rich and dynamic chamber music for a postmodern world.

-- Roni Sarig