The 2006 debut by this collaboration of producer Danger Mouse and singer/rapper Cee-Lo may be the only album this decade to command the indie rock and Top 40 charts at the same time. The single "Crazy" was embraced by Internet indie flagship KEXP, just as contemporary hit stations like Z104 started spinning it every four hours.
The Odd Couple sustains the achievements of St. Elsewhere, but will the indie cognoscenti still bless an artist that's gained mass appeal?
The album deserves to be heard by everyone who loves great music. Gnarls Barkley continue to blend the production gloss and infectious beats of modern pop with the musical substance of 21st-century alternative. You can hear it on tracks like "Going On," where syncopated, radio-friendly percussion combines with cutting-edge psychedelic guitar chords.
Like Outkast, Gnarls Barkley have taken the ingredients of urban R&B and ventured beyond radio's standard formula, turning them into something new.
