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Adam Sultan
Heinous Acts of Love (Pressing)
Not as organic as you might expect from an Austin guitarist who made his name in a one-time hippie band called Poi Dog Pondering, Adam Sultan's debut shows he can sing with deadpan assurance (though two highlights are instrumentals) and play a myriad of post-Poi styles, from pulsing hard rock to loungy jazz. When Sultan's on target, as in the majestic horn-and-piano fueled "Hands" or the dark psychorocker "You Got The Gin," it sounds like Heinous Acts of Love could be a record of the year. Flourishes like Max Crawford's flugelhorns on "The Money Shot" are worth noting, as is former Poi guitarist Ted Cho's work on "Yellow Violet Brown," whose Motownish tambourine gives it a carefree Spoon-meets-Elvis Costello feel. The prime "Swinging Chad," featuring a live Tosca take bolstered by xylophone and horns, is beneficial for showing Sultan's versatility, though it seems to have nothing to do with the rest of the record. Then there are puzzles like the irritatingly-repetitive "American Pimp," which travels nowhere despite an unrelenting pop catchiness, or the warm, yet insipid "Mexican Girls," which seems to sit like a broken down car in need of a fresh spark plug. Sultan is everywhere musically, and the problem with that is he's got too many pent-up ideas. (David Pyndus) - Pop Culture Press
Discography
Heinous Acts of Love (Pressing Records 2004)
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
Since electrifying the alternative music scene in the 1990s as guitarist for Columbia/Sony recording artists Poi Dog Pondering, Adam Sultan has devoted his talents to a wide range of artists, including New Orleans-tinged singer-songwriter Lisa Mednick, the Brit pop psychedelia of Flying Saucers, and the avant-garde jazz/rock of Golden Arm Trio, for whom he composed a number of classical-style chamber pieces, including a string quartet performed by the Tosca Strings (David Byrne). Prior to his current solo effort, Adam joined forces with former Poi Dog guitarist Ted Cho to form Hollowbody, a sonically rich, dual guitar-driven combo the Austin Chronicle described as “moody yet tuneful…a kind of pop sound that doesn’t get made much anymore.” He has also written critically acclaimed scores for the Austin stage, a fitting move considering the effortless theatricality that infuses his latest CD. With an uncanny sense for both mood and narrative, Sultan’s work is at home in the versatile musical traditions of Bowie, Elvis Costello, and Beck.
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