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Sunday, 26 February 2006 09:56

In between Gwen and Fergie, there’s ample room for strong women on the pop circuit, those who sing for their supper as the real deal, void of the over-stimulated manager’s anomaly of raw, yet auto-tuned appeal (Diddy, we’re looking in your general direction).

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Jessy Moss has an essence that’s not only potential industry gold, but talented enough to spawn into the throws of college campuses, clubs, and pop radio stations across the globe. If this sounds like a two-sided compliment (pop radio is not always a category of the competent), it’s not. In between Gwen and Fergie, there’s ample room for strong women on the pop circuit, those who sing for their supper as the real deal, void of the over-stimulated manager’s anomaly of raw, yet auto-tuned appeal (Diddy, we’re looking in your general direction).

Chemical Brothers–like beats with a variety of pop, reggae, world, and hip-hop create the eclectic backbone of Fast and Cheap, an album that rests equally comfortable in each genre. From the hip-hop of “NYC” and “Alarm” to the reefer groves of “Bitten Off,” Fast and Cheap stands on the welcome mat of radio, patiently waiting to come inside. At this point, the man in the booth simply needs to recognize who is at the door.

Previously on the DreamWorks and Universal label, Moss is now self-produced and ultimately label-less. The label days found Moss cohered with the likes of Butch Vig (Garbage, Nirvana) as well as Cypress Hill and Pennywise, and also appearing on the soundtracks Win a Date With Tad Hamilton and D.E.B.S. Up until this point, it seems as if Moss is flirting with her own success. And since the money wasn’t talking, here’s hoping sheer determination and talent will speak louder than labels. Fast and Cheap is surely worth the scream.