Melissa Lane

I've only been waiting my whole adult life for this girl. She refashioned Madonna's "Everybody," channels the Mary Jane Girls and hopscotches between Debbie Deb and the Tom Tom Club like she was born to rule recess from atop a pair of bright pink jelly heels. Miss Norwegian Thing, you are my disco. Her smash debut album, "Anniemal," brings a sophisticated electro-disco that a lot of people don't know whether to treat as pop perfection or something way too perfect for pop. Breathy, almost whispery, vocals intone high and sweet, stopping just short of saccharine. Warm, dubby synths, retro drum machine claps and the unmistakable production touches of Royksopp seduce with a hypnotic magnetism. What's more, her disarmingly earnest presence charms with insouciance at times, and then subtle, but unmistakable shades of sadness. She performs live in the vein of Blondie, minus the drums.

With DJ Major Taylor at Sonotheque, 1444 West Chicago, (312)226-7600, on June 30. (2005-06-28)

Also by Melissa Lane

Tip of the Week
Let's just call it soul-house
(2005-06-24)

Tip of the Week
Mouse on Mars is like a fine, fine wine, surrounded by connoisseurs stretching their chops to discern exactly which drum `n' bass strain, electro inflection or jazz flourish they detect
(2005-06-09)

Tip of the Week
The Latin disco cometh
(2005-05-31)

Tip of the Week
When album-cover art shrank to CD-cover art and then threatened to minimize into mere memory in the MP3 era, someone somewhere had to take a stand
(2005-05-24)

Tip of the Week
(2005-04-26)

Tip of the Week
(2005-03-22)

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