Let me start by saying I didn’t do electroclash. While everyone was bopping around to Peaches, Tiga and Erol Alkan, I was popping my glock to 2001 by Dr Dre and Eminem’s Marshall Mathers LP. I was quite oblivious to the fact that a supposedly important musical transformation was occurring, giving birth to electro as we know it today. 2001 saw the release of Tiga’s Sunglasses at Night, a cover of Corey Hart’s track of the same name which was one of the poster tracks of the electroclash movement. Its horror movie overtones, heavy bassline and snappy drum loop made it an instant classic and gave inspiration for many up and coming electropoppers. 2005 saw the release of Tiga Sontag’s first album Sexor, a light-hearted, camp electro-pop record that earned the Canadian a legion of new fans.

I had heard the name Tiga in various places and assumed by the names on the remixes and the gushing comments by fans that he was a pretty cool and popular dude. But when I heard Sexor for the first time, I was a little underwhelmed. Granted it was two years after its release, but still I couldn’t really work out what all the fuss was about as, by this time, Cut Copy and the other aussie electro boys had their debut’s out which were every bit as good, if not better than Tiga’s. So when the avalanche of publicity and hype arrived on the news of a new single Mind Dimension, and subsequent new album, I was eager to see what a fresh Tiga album would be like, listening to it as it was released.

Ciao!’s cover has a typically eclectic and egotistical cover, picturing the Adonis-like Tiga sitting on what could only be described as a throne, adorned with gold chains, fanning himself with a Japanese fan with Ciao! in yellow spray painted on top. A self indulgent but interesting start.

Opener Beep Beep Beep starts with a punchy tech beat and some synth swirls before the first verse breaks in with an ode to new technology. An underlying piano melody is over shadowed by a deep bassline which makes it one of the standout tracks on the album. Next up is the back massaging bass of Mind Dimension, the lead single from the album and one of its most memorable moments, especially with its two line vocal hook of “Everytime I look into your eyes I see the future, Mind Dimension (x50).” Vocal pitch manipulation is a favourite of Tiga’s, and it is used to great effect throughout the track. Second single Shoes, co-written by Jesper Dahlback and Jason ‘Gonzales’ Beck (other names like Soulwax, James Murphy and Jori Hulkonnen also have songwriting credits on Ciao!) is a radio-friendly consumerist anthem with Nintendo styled synths and high-pitched vocals that make Tiga sound like almost like Queen Madge herself. Other standouts are the slowburning Luxury with its well programmed percussive rhythms and the Presets sounding Sex O’Clock, with its sinister synth pads and playful vocals.

Perhaps the album’s greatest moment is its closer, the ten and a half minute opus Love Don’t Dance Here Anymore. Starting as a slow piano ballad, with nothing but Tiga’s voice and the ivories taking centre stage, it is his strongest vocal moment that sees him pushing his limits with great results, playing with his range rather than the pitch control. Then out of nowhere at the two minute mark a kick-drum and simple hi-hat arrive and a subtle oscillating guitar sneaks around in the background, which draws the track on to the dancefloor. One by one, elements are added to give texture and build it into a full blown nu-disco monster.

Ciao! is an accomplished and technically faultless album from an artist at the top of his game. It’s tied together with a central lyrical and musical theme, that makes it more of an ‘album’ in the traditional sense than its predecessor Sexor. The guest contributors are more there to differentiate, rather than define, with Tiga’s playful camp exuberance never far from centre. While not being groundbreaking (except for perhaps the brilliant Mind Dimension) the album is hard to fault and is an exciting, interesting and most of all a fun listen from start to finish.

Check out the tracklisting…

1. Beep Beep Beep
2. Mind Dimension
3. Shoes
4. What You Need
5. Luxury
6. Sex O’clock
7. Overtime
8. Turn The Night
9. Speak, Memory
10. Gentle Giant
11. Love Don’t Dance Here Anymore

And have a look at the clip for Mind Dimension...