Nite Jewel | One Second of Love

Secretly Canadian (2012)

By LIZ PELLY | March 6, 2012

3.0 Stars

Los Angeles songstress Ramona Gonzalez began home-recording dark dance music in 2008, attracting the attention of blogspots and boutique labels with her soulful voice, lo-fi post-disco beats, and distinct sense of weirdo minimalism. In between philosophy classes at Occidental College, she recorded straight to a portable eight-track cassette recorder. Those tracks became her first singles on Italians Do It Better, Mexican Summer, and Gloriette Records, and eventually her 2008 LP, Good Evening. Her sophomore record, and debut for Secretly Canadian, is a more proper recording endeavor. Having lost the grainy production, her hazy beats are cleaner and more expansive. Of the nine '80s-inspired tracks, highlights are the spaced-out, angular stoner pop and layered harmonies of "She's Always Watching You," the ethereal vocals and minimal guitar of "Unearthly Delights," and the R&B undertones of "In the Dark." The title track is a good place to start. Much like the rest of the LP, it's a tempered synth-funk rager, equally fit for late-night dance floors as mid-morning headphone vibing. It's fitting that Gonzalez is also a multimedia artist whose video and sound installations have appeared around Los Angeles: One Second of Love is artfully crafted.

Topics: CD Reviews , Music, Los Angeles, Dance, More

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