The Ethnobabes
Stargazer (CD)

There seems to be a shortage of bands with sweet, innocent voices and cheery melodies as of late. What happened to the twee-pop scene that was everywhere in the 90s?

When I heard the jangly guitars, sweet girlie harmonies and playful melodies of The Ethnobabes from Norway, I knew that twee-pop fans everywhere would rejoice and fall in love all over again. Stargazer, their first full-length release from aptly named Perfect Pop Records, does what UK twee-popsters Heavenly did well. Lead singer Eivor Vindenes has the sweetest voice which reminds me of some of the best females voices in popdom: Amelia Fletcher, Rose Melberg (The Softies, Gaze, Go Sailor), Harriet Wheeler (The Sundays), and, of course, fellow Scandinavian Nina Persson (The Cardigans).

Stargazer contains thirteen pop gems that are all about two-minutes long. Tracks that stand out are the witty opener, “Odd Shopper,” the Heavenly-esque “Make Some Sound,” the Farfisa-laden “Little Toby,” and “Sea Side Silence,” a sweet ballad that reminisces of lazy, carefree days of daydreaming in innocent wonder.

Listening to The Ethnobabes will make you want to get into an convertible and take a drive up the coast on a sunny, breeze day and do cartwheels in a field of daisies. Something we should all do more often.

– review by LY (8.23.03)