Released: 2/15/2014
6/7 stars
Cibo Matto (meaning crazy food in Italian) was formed in 1994 by two Japanese ex-pats, Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori, who both now reside in New York City. After releasing two albums, the noise-rock Viva La Woman! and the atmospheric funk-dream Stereo ★ Type A, they disbanded in 2002. Fast forward 12 years later and, out of the blue, a new single and video are released with the promise of a new album called Hotel Valentine to be released on Valentine's Day. Well, the day has come and Hotel Valentine is here. As a fan of Cibo Matto, I was simultaneously ecstatic and nervous, would the album be worth waiting all this time for? The answer, in short is: Yes... oh, yes.
Overall, Hotel Valentine has some of the old staples we've come to love from this band: great bass lines, awesome use of traditional jazz and latin instruments, and unique and inventive lyrics. This album seemed to be a tonal hybrid of their two previous full length albums, with the chaotic nature of Viva La Woman! (without the screaming) and dreamy instrumentals of Stereo ★ Type A. Hotel Valentine has a cohesive sound, but enough diversity and excitement to keep you invested. Though the whole album is worth a listen, start to finish, I'll go over the "important" songs to note.
One of my personal favorite tracks on the album is "10th Floor Ghost Girl," which tells the story of a mysterious girl who "talks like American, dances like Brazilian." The song is very danceable, with great guitar throughout (courtesy of Wilco) and a saxophone breakdown towards the end that brings the funk we've come to expect from these girls. Things slow down a bit with "Emerald Tuesday" a very dreamlike track that morphs into an alcohol-fueled nightmare. Soft spoken lyrics like “Hmm... I wonder what’s in this drink. The sky is so pink” set the mood for the descent into madness, reminiscent of the soundtrack to "Naked Lunch" after a night of drinking Absinthe.
"MFN" is the first single off the album and was paired with a loud colorful video that fit the song's swaggering synth explosion to a tee. This track brings some of the ferocious lyricism from Viva La Woman! (“Don’t tell me what to do, I’m a ghost! Don’t throw the f#&*ing oyster shell at me!”), but ends very serenely and sets us up for the upcoming song and title track "Hotel Valentine." Miho’s vocals really shine on this track, very smooth and sensual, and paired with the wonderful percussion on this song in particular, they work beautifully. "Lobby" is another favorite of mine, great food related lyricism again, “I had some cheese and seedless grapes for lunch and floated around for the rest of afternoon,” while we follow a trippy day-in-the-life of Yuka Honda and Miho Hatori. The closing song, "Check Out," is a great way to check out of the album. Ending with Miho’s light vocals and acoustic guitar, it signals the end of our exploration in the titular Hotel Valentine.
Whether or not you're a Cibo Matto fan, you won't be disappointed. The album is dripping with personality and swagger, and it's quite apparent that the girls have not lost their touch. Other than a few odd transition between songs (particularly from "Housekeeping" to "Check Out"), this album makes you feel as though you were one of the "ghosts" so commonly mentioned, haunting the Hotel Valentine, and eating sweet seedless grapes with the band. If you enjoy them, I highly recommend bands like Halcali, Maluca Mala (if you like their more upbeat, danceable tracks) and Me'Shell Ndegeocello (if you like their slower, funky tracks).
Bon Appétit, Cibo Matto!
