Smooth and Wild Vol. 1
Live from Vancouver's Waldorf Hotel

Review by Stuart Derdeyn

No other Cocktail Nation compilation comes close to the design job pulled off here. From the cocktail umbrella in the corner of the CD case to the coaster and recipe for those evil Blue Lizard martinis included inside, this is all about class dah-ling.

Contained on this CD are the crème de la crowd of this city's scene, and, quite simply, Vancouver kicks the competition's butt. T.O.'s Jaymz Bee can't quelch a belch next to the performances on the disc! And how the Blue Lizard Cocktail Club gang managed to get such clean recordings amidst all of the clinking glasses and talky talky is miraculous. It's a night at the Lizard in one easy to use package. Blend up a Blue Lizard martini and slouch stylishly on a velvet settee to take in the treats.

Smoothly moving from band to band, the bossa beat grooviness is so seamless it's hard to tell one combo from the next, although the two cuts by Esquivel-style instrumentalists Pure Velour and the Colorifics stand out. For pure manic energy (pretty taboo in Lounge culture), the Molestics deliver the goods, especially on "Hui Mawahoo Ka Waa." Za Za Velvet and Lux each contribute two smooth cuts, but we get only a short 2:13 of the awesome Vic Storm.

This is a fab-oo addition to anyone's fashionable recording collection. A testament to a simpler time and place. Pure puff for now people. Get one for posterity's sake, before the whole scene is destroyed by cover stories and pretensions.

Artist Contact Info: 507-318 Homer St., Vancouver, B.C., V6B 2V3