Carrboro’s Felix Obelix has a few road blocks on its way to accessibility. Musically, the band relies on such odd instruments as a vibraphone and a glockenspiel. Thematically, it probes such dense topics as death and passing time.
But both pale in comparison to Wendy Spitzer’s voice. Nasal and piercing with a tight vibrato, it could be as abrasive as a cheese grater if used in the wrong way.
Luckily, Obelix is savvy enough to turn its impediments into strengths. Built of vibrant music that revels in stylistic variation and lyrics with as much dry wit as a season of “Seinfeld,” this debut is distinctly catchy.
Felix Obelix
The Tick of the Clock, the Beat in the Chest
Dive Verdict: 3.5 of 5 stars
In “See the Stain Come Out With Lye” Spitzer duets with Megafaun’s Phil Cook. Playfully bantering among bouncing horns and accordion, they play the role of a jaded couple with satiric gusto. “Have you ever really listened to me?” Cook asks, to which Spitzer gleefully replies, “What’s that? I can’t hear you over the din.” But the bulk of this record is more off-beat.
“Oh! Cadaver” sets an ode to a dead lover’s body to cheap church organ and a xylophone that capers like rattling bones. It’s an irreverent but still touching romp that would be at home on “The Nightmare Before Christmas” soundtrack.
Occasionally though, Obelix’s risky skills fall flat. On “Pinprick” Spitzer pushes her voice to chalkboard-clawing heights over a gratingly repetitive musical loop.
But it’s easy to ignore such errors. Having serious fun while tackling real issues, Felix Obelix has an album that’s as defiantly different as it is undeniably entertaining.
