Johns: Ms. John Soda

Ms. John Soda: Plenty Of

[purchase]

Back in Horns Week, writing about the Tied & Tickled Trio, I mentioned the little solar system of bands that surround German electronica/post-rockers the Notwist. Well, here's another planetoid: Ms. John Soda. Michael Acher, a principal in both the Notwist and the TTT, is present once again as half of this duo. Acher programs the beats and composes most of the songs while Stephanie Bohm (keyboardist in the instrumental band Couch) incants her icy cold vocals over top. Most of their songs are a little bouncier than the one I've chosen—uptempo mixtures of IDM and guitar rock, not too far from the Notwist's sound, but with Bohm's near-monotone voice carrying every song. "Plenty Of" is the closer from their most recent album, 2006's Notes and the Like. It's among my favorites the band has ever done, largely because of the ominous, hypnotic feel.