Underworld

Pearl's Girl is nearly an amazing EP; with a little trimming and a bit more focus and polish, it would have made for a quality album on its own. Comprised of four versions of "Pearl's Girl," from Second Toughest in the Infants, and five new songs, it's more than an hour's worth of lush, organic electronic music. Other than the opening mix of "Pearl's Girl," the title track doesn't necessarily fare that well. The album and edit versions are rather redundant additions to the EP, and the "14996 Version" lacks enough variation to provide much interest. The "Tin There" remix is throbbing, vibrant trance. Of the new tracks, "Deep Arch" is perhaps most compelling, sounding not unlike Kraftwerk with state-of-the-art synthesizers. The remaining new songs all feature mesmerizing, amazing sounds, but for the most part, they sound unfinished. "Puppies" features strange, spooky vocals. "Oich Oich" is beat-heavy. "Cherry Pie" introduces skittering, pristine cymbal sounds right out of an Orbital album. "Mosaic" is aptly titled with a gentle, percolating feel. Pearl's Girl is great background music; it's not as interesting as any of the band's full-length releases, but it's more than an hour of striking electronic soundscapes. ~ Tim DiGravina, All Music Guide