Gnarls Barkley - The Odd Couple (2025 Repress)

With its cinematic origins, 'The Odd Couple' is the natural title for the second album by a pair who seem to spend as much time in wardrobe as the studio and whose recordings are often compared to film scores. Their greatest hit, 2006's "Crazy", was even built around a chunk of a spaghetti western soundtrack. Yet after the success of 2006's excellent 'St Elsewhere', the collaboration of singer, Thomas "Cee-Lo Green" Callaway, and producer, Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton, has become a permanent institution. 'The Odd Couple' stands up proudly alongside its predecessor. The basic recipe hasn't been drastically altered--Danger Mouse's skittering beats and snap-crackle-pop production still provide the perfect platform for Cee-Lo's mighty, soulful wail. If anything, the pair have refined and sharpened their approach to a razor's edge. The key is the way the musical flavors intersect: the Arthur Lee-meets-N.E.R.D. stroll of "Surprise," the jubilant jumble of gospel/soul/synthpop on "Going On," the Otis Redding-shares-a-treadmill-with-Outkast feel of the single "Run (I'm a Natural Disaster)." The cumulative effect is one of a group whose trick-bag has a never-ending supply of happy surprises.