MARTIN TIELLI Operation Infinite Joy (Six Shooter) Rating: NNN
Rating: NNN
Operation Infinite Joy marks the kickoff of an ambitious four-album subscription series for the Rheostatics’ Martin Tielli, and it’s an excellent start. Subscribers get to snag each disc long before its street date, in a limited-edition, artfully packaged form. The first in the series is a lush, dreamy set of challenging, glammy art pop that falls somewhere between Queen and OK Computer-era Radiohead, featuring a full studio band and half the Six Shooter stable (N.Q. Arbuckle, Luke Doucet, Mia Sheard, etc). The abrupt changes in tone and dynamics can be unsettling, and the hyper-dramatic tunes sometimes spiral out of control, but when it works, Operation Infinite Joy is nothing short of stunning.