El Perro Del Mar

El Perro Del Mar
El Perro Del Mar
(Control Group)
El Perro del Mar has a song called “Coming Down the Hill,” calling up Kate Bush’s classic song, “Running Up that Hill.” In fact, the Bush influence seeps into this entire album. Swede Sarah Assbring (the one-woman-show that is El Perro Del Mar) favours Bush-isms, especially in the vocals. She layers the chants and abstract, non-linguistic vocal sounds, and the instruments—samples mainly—add to the wash effect. Delivered in an airy soprano (reminiscent of Jane Siberry and Keren Ann) the tunes are simple evocations of life—“Party,” “People” and “Dog.” Closer listens suggest metaphor at work. This is pleasant music, just not original.
—Sean Flinn

This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2007.