by Tony Wilds
Lady in Cement has one foot in the past and one foot in the present. Montenegro's fixation on the Beach Boys' sound adds a rather stale quality to the proceedings; his chorus could learn to sing something other than "buh bup bup bahhh." It undercuts the sinister sounds needed to effectively portray such low-level crimes as pool hustling and burlesque. Fuzz-toned guitar makes a few tracks almost psychedelic, and bossa nova continues as the beat of choice for the mod sound. "Again" features lilting strings and vibes, while "The Shark" and "Sugar Seymour" are cheesy but interesting rock. "Tony's Theme" had the potential to be a mod masterpiece, with great drum breaks and "out" horn riffs, but its brevity and the inclusion of strings kill it. Montenegro's impressive versatility is clearly evident, but like many soundtracks this begs for pop reinterpretation.