June 1999

Dori Levine/Michael Levy
Koo-Koo
New Artists Records

By John Murph

The intriguing dialogues crafted by vocalist Dori Levine and pianist Michael Levy recall those of Jeannie Lee and Ran Blake. On Koo-Koo, the duo delves deep into throes of cerebral celebrations as Levine's wordless vocals, which range from warm to raggedy darts, through Levy's mostly pointillistic playing. Only on "My Heart Belongs to Daddy" and "Lover Man" do they mildly forgo the inward-gazing to deliver some comparatively less contrived performances. Despite the avant garde setting and slanted reading of classics, Koo-Koo covers no new ground.