KUDU is a four piece: two keyboards, drums, and a singer/bassist. Where to start? Nick Kasper and Peter Stoltzman are a keyboarding double-threat, keeping things gliding, yet sparse, not weighing things down at all, making plenty of space for the other members of KUDU to fill up and fit in. Kasper and Stoltzman only occasionally let the science-fiction effects get away from them, wisely choosing instead to let restraint rule the day when less careful hands would turn such efforts into a Star Trek soundtrack. Deantoni Parks has been described as a human drum machine, which is true in terms of his speed, though he brings more feeling and emotion to his playing than one might expect from a drummer who can seemingly be everywhere at once. Yet he too operates with some restraint, content to be the best there is at what he does, rather than dazzling the listener with pointless pyrotechnics and enabling the listener to focus on the vocals of Sylvia Gordon. Try listening to this lady without falling in love. It cannot be done. listen to KUDU without hearing her voice in your sleep. When during "Cannibal" Ms. Gordon softly tells the listener "More than just a feast for the eyes/I want to feel your pulse from the inside/I've acquired a taste for you/any other flavor just won't do," it's apparent that she is not playing around. And when she sums up the eternal dilemma in just four lines "Starin' at Pandora's box/a box marked do not touch/I'm trying to avoid the fate/I know I want so much" during "Temptation," the listener wants nothing less than to be the object of her attraction during her moment of weakness. By "Force of Nature," the closing tune of the CD, when Ms. Gordon breathes "give up give in, you will never win/you can't fight a force of nature" the battle, if any, was over a half hour ago.

KUDU is a CD, and band, that you will want to hear. There are a couple of weaknesses here --- "Cinemajik" is an entertaining though pointless instrumental, and why include an instrumental when there is a treasure like Ms. Gordon's voice waiting in the wings? And on that latter point, why bury her vocals in the mix, as opposed to bringing them to the forefront? These are minor quibbles, however, when considered against the group's many, many strengths, and ones which hopefully will be rectified on the group's next CD. You'll want to wear this one out in the meantime. Very highly recommended.