space contact with the third sex

Taking their name from an Italian lesbian vampire pulp-comic-book heroine (seen at the right), Sukia emerged from LA's Silverlake scene in 1996 and released Contacto Especial con el Tercer Sexo. Combining Moog-driven grooves laced with found samples and space-age pop aesthetics, it was the perfect match for the production team of the Dust Brothers and they issued the debut on their Nickel Bag label. Let's visit a paranormal conference on acid where Esquivel is on stage covering Paul's Boutique!

An ominous, free-floating collage of found sounds, drum machines, cheap keyboards, and samples, Sukia flirts with exotica and the avant-garde without committing to either. And it's the better for it. Sukia's instrumentals are alternatingly mesmerizing and disturbing, fueled by pseudo-bossa nova rhythms, jazzy chords, and sheets of noise. It's not necessarily an alienating record, but anyone well versed in the cut-paste productions of the Dust Brothers, who also helmed this record, will be more inclined toward meeting the album halfway, since the music isn't strictly lounge revival, avant-pop, or electronic music. It's a fascinating, darkly humorous melange of all three, and it's endlessly fascinating. - AMG

Sukia - the Dream Machines
Sukia - Gary Super Macho
Sukia - Touching Me Touching You