46

by Neil Davidson It's difficult to describe Kino's second offering as a proper album as such. As the name "46" suggests, this is just some unfinished business left over from the band's debut "45". Having assembled a makeshift line-up to record his first album, songwriter Viktor Tsoy gamely carried on recording while trying to assemble a new band from scratch. As a result, what we have here is simply a bunch of lo-fi demos, mainly recorded with very little or no accompaniment beyond the odd half-hearted overdub. For the most part, the songs inhabit familiar Tsoy territory and fans can catch a glimpse of some stripped down standards, such as Muzika Voln, Sasha and Dozhd Dlya Nas which would go on to become fully realised on later albums. Otherwise, the Serge Gainsbourg-like, Ya Idu Po Ulitse, in particular, stands out as an enjoyable, well developed nugget. It's a fleeting exception however. Most of the others fail to distinguish themselves, and remain here alone in their very roughest form. Overall, this is certainly an intriguing and intimate glimpse of the man himself, and at times it's much like being present at an un-plugged performance in his bedroom. There is just enough idiosyncrasy and energy to carry it off, but all in all, this is one for fans only.