It's hard to separate thoughts of Dodo's music from those of the movie Metropolis and Jacobs Ladders. Her primary instrument is the theremin, which really lends to the sci-fi vibe, but it doesn't overwhelm her music. Freshly Squeezed regards this release of "The Android's Dream EP" as a "best of" selection of 3 tracks originally found on Dodo's debut album The Android's Dream.

1. Sunlight On Mars
2. Cleopatra's Needle
3. Iridium

Are you familiar with Siouxsie & The Banshees song "Red Light"? If you're not, it probably won't make a difference, but the opening track called "Sunlight On Mars" makes excellent use of that original songs percussion. It's the whole reason that song became as popular as it did in its time. Though knowing the original song lends an immediate familiarity, it's the lushness of the theremin, deep bass line and skittering percussive additions that Dodo's built around that percussive loop that makes it worth owning.

The second song, "Cleopatra's Needle" definitely evokes visions of early Egypt...and spaceships. It moves along with a dub-like laziness and incorporates some truly unexpected elements.

The last song "Iridium" brings on the most upbeat rhythms, though on the bpm scale, it's still considered quite low. The melodies carry on the Egyptian feel, though the organ keys go a long way toward dispelling Cleopatra's ghost.

I haven't heard the Android's Dream album so I can't really say how true it is that these are the best songs from it, but I can say that if these aren't the best ones, that's an album worth getting hold of. Much like the theremin's haunting, other-wordly sound, Dodo's music is a perfect balance of the organic and synthetic. You could even think of it as a kind of ultra-futuristic, instrumental hip-hop.

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