(4AD/Remote Control)

Recent 4AD signee gets Steve Albini to produce her appropriately sparse debut

A classically-trained viola player turned singer-songwriter, Anni Rossi arrives at 4AD armed with the sort of left-of-centre ideas Lisa Germano first brought to the legendary label in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, yet somehow remaining vastly different from the above violin maestro with her less-is-more approach. Utilising Devin Maxwell (who previously worked with Bat For Lashes) on drums and percussion, the 23 year-old Rossi is responsible for most of the arrangements on her debut solo release, her alternately scything/soothing viola and girly vocals dominating the record. In full adherence to Albini’s Spartan aesthetic, Rockwell was recorded in just one day with minimal overdubs; kicking off with the decreasing-tempo Machine, the album reaches early peaks with the memorable Ecology and Las Vegas, the former featuring some pretty keyboard riffs and the latter riding only on a viola bassline and Maxwell’s simplistic beat. A curious cover of Living In Danger by ‘90s Swedish hitmakers Ace Of Base strips the fluffy pop song down to bare bones, revealing a previously non-visible emotional core, while Glaciers has the protagonist pondering “being flattened and living under glaciers” and Venice is a requiem for the slowly drowning city delivered in stoic verse. Closing Air Is Nothing is the sole guitar-featuring track here, marrying Rossi’s fraught tones with low, underscored chords to a disarming effect. Occasionally slightly whimsical but for the most part compelling, Rockwell marks the appearance of a distinctive new talent on the female artist block.

***˝

DENIS SEMCHENKO

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