Betcha' Bottom Dollar

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From the first strains of the opening track "Sisters", it's clear that Betcha Bottom Dollar is not a typical debut album. But then the Puppini Sisters are not a typical pop act, at least not in the 21st Century. Their close, three-part harmonies are reminiscent of the vocal groups of the 1930s and 1940s, and particularly the Andrews Sisters. But rather than sounding like an anachronism, the Puppini Sisters merely demonstrate the timelessness of some of these songs. Betcha Bottom Dollar is fresh, fun and vibrant, blowing the dust off of cobwebby classics like "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" and "Mr Sandman". Elsewhere, they also put their own unique stamp on more recent hits, with varying results. While Kate Bush's "Wuthering Heights" and Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive" fail to get things swinging, Blondie's "Heart of Glass" and The Smiths' "Panic" are both injected with a fresh new (old?) sound. Much credit must also be given to producer Benoit Charest, who manages to employ a whole host of instrumentation and orchestration, whilst never forgetting to put the voices of the Puppini Sisters front and centre. It might be easy to dismiss the Puppini Sisters' debut as another novelty album, but their intentions and love for the style--like their voices themselves--are crystal clear. --Robert Burrow