A Night At The Ritz

New Line (2007)

By Charles R. Greaves

 

Singer/songwriter/producer Scott Masson is OFFICE. The rest of the band is made up of Chicago alt scene musicians, all heavies in their own right. All that comes together in OFFICE and their first label offering A Night at the Ritz.  It’s all a pleasant surprise. One well crafted song after another.  Music that is at once familiar without sounding overtly like anything you can put your finger on.

 

OFFICE is equally comfortable as background to a house party or plugged into headphones on a rainy day. Happy melodies are frequently played as a veneer to darker heavier lyrics. Neither your left nor right brain wiring will be disappointed.

 

A Night at the Ritz opens with a seriously short (2:05) "Oh My". First glance would have you place "Oh My" in the dance groove envelope, but like so much of OFFICE, that would miss the point. It’s a darkly sexual lyrical ride in miniature; enough that I wished it had another minute or so more.

 

Next up is "If You Don’t Know by Now", only slightly longer (2:45), a tightly poppy musical number that sounds like it may have been recorded live, almost. It’s a cool little short story mystery with no clean answers but the best songs never offer clean answers.

 

"The Big Bang Jump!" is another strong offering. Driving rhythmic lines make you want to slide around in socks on a polished floor while you "air guitar".

 

Whether intentionally or not, the songs are ordered in a way that make you not want to hit the random button. It wants to be listened to in order. And it ends with a pretty alt/folk "Suburban Perfume". It’s a bittersweet look over the shoulder of someone who has matured enough to know he doesn’t know.

The production values are quite good; the musicianship is tasteful and well crafted. "Night at the Ritz" is worth a spin and OFFICE would be a good band to keep an eye on.