Cinerama: Va Va Voom

David Gedge, the celebrated and usually bitter singer/songwriter behind the British pop group The Wedding Present, is also behind Cinerama. Unlike the edgy, spare stuff Gedge did with his other group, however, the 13 songs on Va Va Voom are big, extravagant, string-laden things, pop music in grandiose form. There's even some shamelessly sappy, joyful material on this record: "Love" is a huge, gushing laundry list that falls all over itself naming things to love about someone, "Barefoot In the Park" is a gentle little ballad about staying in with someone you love, and so on. But longtime Gedge fans needn't worry; this is a deeply mixed-up album. There are plenty of songs about threatening to kill your ex-girlfriend and her new lover, or pathetically asking if you can be next if a girl's new lover doesn't work out, or just plain hating a girl's new lover, as in the snappy little ditty "Hate." That it doesn't get old after a few songs, or a few listens, or a few albums, for that matter, is a tribute to Gedge's very real songwriting talent. If Va Va Voom is a little more of a production, a little less harsh in feel than his other records, don't worry: The man still isn't quite sure if life is shit or sugar, and he still makes bitter, confused, and wonderful records.