Bedroomstudio

Vocally reminiscent of Evanescence on the female-sung tracks — but without, you know, sucking — Bedroomstudio is an electronic-flavoured pop collective based in Vancouver. Starting well with the melancholy pop of "Valentines,” things swing between diverse instrumentals and memorable pop tunes. "Torn” has a long sax solo — and it’s good! "Losing Me” is one remix away from dance floor domination, if that counts for anything. "Melt” has a rapper, acoustic guitar and scratching, yet avoids sounding like Everlast. Obviously we’re not dealing with your run-of-the-mill CanCon here. There are a few missteps — "Rain” goes on long enough to pay off a mortgage, despite some cool sounds, and the same could be said for closing track "Rebirth.” But then the "hey is this Tortoise?” intro to "You Drive” comes along and it’s happy days! Ignore the bland name and check this out; it’s probably the most "now” CD to come out of Canada this year.