Even with the niftiest ingredients, the pie isn't
going to cook itself. Los Angeles band Bodies Of Water commands frolicking
melodies and the interplay of male and female voices, often with the
flirtatious drama of an endearingly bad musical. Beneath such a surface, a band
needs to keep screwing with the formula to hold interest. Bodies Of Water gets
around to that often enough on its second album, A Certain Feeling, but lets the clever bits
sit naked for too long. The album-opener, "Gold, Tan, Peach, And Grey," becomes
a far more exciting song at the bridge, as joyous call-and-response vocals
shake off the coy romantic drift of the first three minutes. "If I Were A Bell"
drops little hints of suspense, only to deflate with repetition. Bodies Of Water
has all the makings of a distinct, thrilling sound, and A Certain Feeling finds it inching toward
maturity. If it'd only burn off some of that arty hesitation, it might get more
focused barbs like "Under The Pines" and "Darling, Be Here," and fewer frustrating
detours like "Even In A Cave."