'Moments', the self-released (on his own label, Elm&Oak) debut album from Pnuma Trio bassist and dj/producer Alex B, comes off more like a demo reel or a mix-tape then a full album.
It hits all the necessary notes- there's the obligatory rap collaboration, the song that samples dialogue from a sci-fi flick, the laid back, step-tinged track with females vocals- even a few repetitive beats just begging to be looped from a boom-box and free-styled over.
Now, this isn't to say that 'Moments' is bad, or conventional- there is a lot to like, from the shuffling bass and staccato vocal stabs on 'You and I Both Know' to the engagingly off-beat, introspective 'Talk it Out.'
But aside from those, and a handful of other tracks, most of the 17 songs on 'Moments' barely have time to develop. A beat is introduced, tweaked a little, and just when you expect it to evolve further, it cuts out. Few songs take off like you want them to, and far too many breeze by with hardly an impact.
Partly, this may be due to design. As the title suggests, most of 'Moments' songs are short little electro-vignettes, with the bulk clocking in around the 2:30 mark. But whether intentional or not, the end result is a CD containing a lot of interesting, but half-formed, ideas. It's no surprise that the best songs- like the aforementioned 'You and I Both Know'- are also the ones that feel like they've been given the most attention.
It's undeniable that Alex B knows how to make beats- the question for the future is whether he knows where to go with them.