(Urban Jungle Records)

www.urbanjungle.com.br

Recently released in the U.S. Télépathique's Last Time first crawled out of the primordial soup and onto South America's musical radar in 2006. Finally making their way here, the Brazilian duo's been compared by reviewers to other electro/dance/rock groups such as CSS or Bonde Do Role who hail from the same country. However, Télépathique is treading on a different plain from either of those bands; here, singer Mylene Pires and drummer/DJ Erico Theobaldo have created a dance album that takes a few unique twists. They have trance-styled, word-free tracks that are encompassed in electronic loops of sounds with numbers like "Telefunk," and "U R a Joke." These songs sound like bad rave parties. However, the most entrancing of tracks are those where lead singer Pires lends her voice and seduces us with her sexy whispers and laid back vocals in either Portuguese or English.

The best song to illustrate this is easily "Vida Inteira." In it, Pires woos us with her jazzy voice and her vocals are not hampered down by loops and an overabundance of sounds; instead, the music complements Pires and the cool beat makes you get up and dance while you attempt to sing along and test out your Portuguese. Last Time is a fine debut that shows promise of where Télépathique can take their sound. Hopefully the future will bring an album where Theobaldo produces more understated sounds and Pires' vocals are more dominant.

Standout Tracks: "Love and Lust," "Vida Inteira" APRIL S. ENGRAM