Music reviews. CD reviews. Critically hip!

Innovative, intuitive, intelligent… just a few of the earliest thoughts that crawl into your head after a once over of their new self-titled night flight into the expanse of exploration. AI's foundation is one of life itself and the self-discovery within evolution on an instrumental odyssey that touches upon everything from Guitar Rock to Smooth Jazz to Electronic/Dance, New Age, and Trip Hop… and whatever other amalgams fall in range as the reels roll. 

Envision an unlikely pairing of Janes Addiction with Smashing Pumpkins… Simply Red, Morrissey and Prince with the creative overall of the Too Pure roster where let loose an anything flies weather pattern inclusive of a Six By Seven, Swell, Bowery Electric-like eclecticism. 

AI, contrary to the title, is not reflective of an Einstein with X's and O's and formulaic principles and confusion made to order, but rather, a tonally vivid impulse framed of youth quest and forward steps for development, design and procuring of percussive instrumentation with the simplicity of singularity in and around the voice. 

A trio of notable talents reared of a previously musical climate, AI is led by the Young Brothers, Nick on vox and guitar, and Zack's percussion-previously of a Bad 4 Good decade old role that's worth mentioning if only for the, "Oh yeah, whatever happened…" and totally different flight pattern going here; and there's Pablo Manzarek, he of another generation's Ray fame and of a familiar key-playing role here, spiritually supportive if rhythmically less dominant, and aided by renowned producer/programmer Chris Vrenna to create a lush, eclectic, and cinematic mix of trippy grooves, and flighty aural passages on their upswept and universally committed path. 

Save for some brief stammering mid to late, among the highlighted entries include: the guitar heavy lead tracks "Bottoms Up," and "One Man's War;" the racy "Alien Sex" and it's "She fucked me up with her tentacles" concept of freakier is better; and the Farrell-like sincerity of "She Says," the similarly modeled, "Danger," or the D&B pulse of "Caught 'N Da Fire."