Although it was released in 2006, first-time listeners to the first album by Toronto-based
dance-pop duo
Sissy would be excused for thinking they were hearing a long-forgotten gem from the mid-'90s U.K. indie
electronic scene. All Under is a canny mix of heavy beats and sweetly sung
pop hooks that recalls vintage
Portishead,
Massive Attack, and
Saint Etienne, not to mention such near-forgotten
dance-pop acts as
Dubstar and
Space. The duo's retro musical approach is a refreshing reaffirmation of the sounds that made some truly great music back in the day, but All Under isn't merely a nostalgia exercise. Songs like the dreamy first single "I See You" and the darkly atmospheric "Can't See You" (which features strings and acoustic guitars alongside the electronics for a sound akin to
Everything But the Girl's Walking Wounded era) feature a sturdy melodic sense, and the album's secret weapon is singer
Johanne Williams' gentle croon of a voice, an immediately appealing vocal style with strong echoes of
Portishead's
Beth Gibbons, but also some of the tremulous emotion of
Lisa Germano. All Under is an album that transcends the sub-categories of
electronica, as appealing to more
pop-minded listeners as it is to the club kids. ~ Stewart Mason, All Music Guide
