The Universe Tonight

The Twigs are two sisters, Laura and Linda Good, from Chicago who moved to Los Angeles to chase their pop dreams. Universe Tonight was recorded both in Chicago and L.A., but it sounds pure L.A. pop, big and shiny and overflowing with sunny vocal harmony and breezy tunes. The record is full of modern touches like programmed drums but also has the feel of a timeless guitar-based pop record. You could easily put them into the same category as Aimee Mann and Sheryl Crow. The Twigs are much lighter and polished than those two but share the same sense of classic melody and song structure. The sisters wrote some gems for Universe Tonight: "It's Alright" is a summery toe-tapper that would sound great blasting out of a convertible heading to the beach, "Irresistble You" is a slinky ode to obsession that slyly references Atlanta Rhythm Section's "So Into You." They also do a very interesting cover of the Kinks' "All Day and All of the Night," turning it into a minor-key piano-driven cabaret number. Very nice. The only place the record falls a little short is in the lyrics; there are a few ungainly couplets here and there and "Mrs. Green" is a misguided attempt at some kind of social commentary. This minor objection is not enough to dissuade lovers of modern guitar pop from giving the Twigs a try.