I fell in love with Air before I had ever heard of them. I was waist-deep in the used section of the legendary Lou’s Records in Encinitas, CA when an oddly soothing soundscape washed through the room, gently suggesting what it might be like to be on ecstasy aboard a futuristic interplanetary rocketship. I asked the guy behind the counter who it was, and he handed me Air’s 2004 masterpiece, Talkie Walkie.

French duo Nicolas Godin and Jean-Benoit “JB” Dunckel, the masterminds behind Air, have created several albums’ worth of utopian space-boy mood music over the past nine years; saccharine-laced, dreamy ambience and simplistic, gorgeous atmospheres that welcome you with a warm familiarity while gently whisking you across the universe.
 
With Pocket Symphony, due March 6th on Astralwerks, Air continue to respectfully channel their electronica ancestors Tangerine Dream, building on the krautrockers’ knack for otherworldly atmospheres with a David Bowie kind of flair. It was no shock to learn that the duo also credit minimalist American composer Philip Glass as a driving influence on the album. Keeping the course, it is a graceful exercise in the art of subtle suggestion rather than outright statement.

Producer and collaborator Nigel Godrich, the knob wizard behind Radiohead, Beck and Talkie Walkie, is once again at the controls for Pocket Symphony. There have been many studio collaborations over the years, and Air stays true to form as both Jarvis Cocker of Pulp and Neil Hannon of The Divine Comedy provide vocals on the album, supplementing Dunckel and Godin’s familiar voices.

“Space Maker” introduces the album with gorgeous instrumental slow-step piano chords and soft guitar phrasing over a stardust backdrop. Godin recently studied under an Okinawa master, learning to play the shamisen, a banjo-like 3-string guitar, and a Japanese floor harp called the koto. Both instruments are prominently featured on the album, adding another layer to Air’s multidimensional tapestry.

Pocket Symphony is not instantly memorable; unlike it's predecessor, you won’t be finding these songs in car commercials. The feeling is more like driving in the rain at night. The vocal layers and delicate yearning on “Somewhere Between Waking and Sleeping” penetrate the surface scenery and add a deeper human element than the other 11 tracks. Somehow, the duo has found a way to make an album more mellow than Talkie Walkie.

Space cadet poster-children that they are, it’s no surprise that the spirit of Ziggy Stardust is along for the ride on Pocket Symphony. The album tries to retain the Bowie-esque stargazer atmosphere of its predecessor, but is a bit overzealous in doing so. The psychedelic sonar of “Napalm Love” is reminiscent of “Ashes to Ashes,” while Major Tom is again channeled on the vocals to “One Hell of a Party.”  But there’s no need for apologies; it’s an honorable homage, and the brighter side of melancholy is really quite beautiful.

See Air live this spring when they head to the U.S. Their incredible performance at 2004 at the annual Coachella Festival in Indio, CA drew more bodies than the headliners, and I’m willing to bet they’ll return for an encore performance this May.

Tracklist:
01 Space Maker

02 Once Upon A Time

03 Hell Of A Party

04 Napalm Love

05 Mayfair Song

06 Left Bank

07 Photograph

08 Mer Du Japon
09 Lost Message

10 Somewhere Between Waking And Sleeping

11 Redhead Girl

12 Night Sight