She may be a woman, but is she a lady? And can she be turned? My apologies...
Norwich may not be the most rock n' roll town in the U.K. - but then let's face it, neither is Sheffield and that inestimable wreck of a municipality at least managed to excrete Reverend & the Makers (and a shitload of forks) from its furry ring - but then Sargasso Trio aren't really that rock n' roll anyway, so what does it matter where they're from?
The members of Sargasso Trio first met playing in a forty-piece samba band. I (and you) should forgive them. The members of Sargasso Trio then decamped and tried to reconstruct the "vibe" of a forty-piece samba band in a small room. I (and you) should forgive them (in truth I'm finding it really quite difficult but hopefully you're doing rather better).
Thankfully (oh so thankfully) realising that this couldn't (and shouldn't) be attempted, they instead resolved to alchemise the rocks of country, Latin, 80s electro and English folk into a very shiny and precious record that was resolutely more than the sum of its parts.
That record is 'Burnin, Burnin, Burnin' and is on the release slate for later this year. Therefore all we've got to go on thus far is 'She's A Woman' - and although you'd be hard pressed to find Holly Golightly salivating all over the counter at Tiffany's at the mere sight of it, it's also far too classy to be sold to cheap-assed chavs at your local Elizabeth Duke.
At first listen, 'She's A Woman' appears nothing more than a glossy throwback to 80s coffee table jazz-pop-funk (I'm thinking Sade here - and yes I am in colossal pain just admitting it) but give it a couple of seconds and the lush Korg/Casio keyboard chords and delightful harmonies immediately begin to soothe and seduce and then sweet-talk their way into your heart.
The vocals in particular, are a stunning success. Although I've hated singing in rounds since I had to participate in the mauling of 'London Bridge Is Falling Down' at little school (what passed for musical education back in the early-80s really was truly scandalous), Sargasso Trio contrive something really quite beautiful on 'She's A Woman'.
Emily, Pete and Ben (them being Sargasso Trio...obviously...can't you guys count?) have crafted an unexpectedly exquisite single and one can only hope that the album lives up to expectation. Excellent work.