Many, many years ago when I was working at a used bookstore, I was reading a magazine interview with Cibo Matto's Yuka Honda. She was remarking about how intrigued she was with the process of writing songs with just voice and drum machine, in short, forms of music that thrived on simplicity. And it wasn't just Ms. Honda - several years ago The Fugees had a hit arrangement of "Killing Me Softly," not to mention the numerous Bjork tracks that she did with sparse samples and vocals.
This is an art form that I'm glad we haven't lost - Onzieb/Kitty J's "All Grown Up" is a lovely Electro/RnB ballad that shines vocally and melodically. The opening organ/synth sounds are rather plain, which is no problem at all because the vocals are so deeply beautiful. Handclaps and bass are the companions of the verse until more intense drum patterns begin. The production and talent present on this recording has me wondering why it's taken me so long to hear it. I suppose that with the barrage of music thrown at us daily, we can't expect that talent alone will equal success, but for Onzieb/Kitty J, I sure hope it comes soon.
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