As a fan of the French band Air, and particularly of their last album, 2004's Talkie Walkie, I was excited to hear their latest album, Pocket Symphony. Unfortunately, the duo of Nicolas Godin and Jean-BenoArt Dunckel seem to have traded in electronic-textured pop music for meandering minimalist instrumentals and Jarvis Cocker guest appearances. The latter crime against music (unless you like Jarvis Cocker, in which case, ignore this comment), on the song ""One Hell of a Party,"" plods on interminably for four minutes with Cocker droning on about the ""burned-out husk of the morning"" after ""one hell of a party."" I found it insufferable; maybe you'd like it.
Aside from that, there is a disproportionate amount of aimless instrumentals on this album, surprising after Talkie Walkie's frequent use of the band's own vocals over rhythmic, dreamy pop music. Air's strengths as a band have been largely lost. Here their use of electronic beats with organic live instruments, like guitars and pianos, results in plodding tunes like the opener ""Space Maker"" and ""Lost Message"" rather than the gentle charm of ""Universal Traveler"" from Talkie Walkie or the emotional punch of ""Remember"" from 1998's Moon Safari.
Where are the electronically-processed, emotive vocals of the band members? Where are those catchy beats and cinematic strings? Where is that pop heartbeat which has pulsed throughout Air's work? Pocket Symphony is an album which fails to engage the listener or to give the band's fans what they have come to expect.
Songs that come close to the quality of older work are the guitar-driven ""Left Bank,"" a quiet heartbreaker, and the gorgeous ""Mer du Japon,"" with vocals in French and an atmospheric blend of instruments, including Godin playing the Japanese instruments shamisen and koto. The first single, the piano-led ""Once Upon a Time,"" is pleasant enough but repetitive, and the closer, ""Night Sight,"" is soothing but almost too lethargic.
Considering Air collaborated once again with celebrated producer Nigel Godrich on Pocket Symphony, one might expect a much more satisfying album. Godrich showed a skillful hand on Talkie Walkie as well as in retexturing the music of Beck and Paul McCartney, not to mention his most famous work with Radiohead. But here the ethereal beauty, hypnotic beats and brilliant layering of sounds of a great band have been compromised. There is always the next album. Vive l'Air!
