This is not a crossover record. There is nowhere for the
Brodsky Quartet to cross over to because the
Brodsky has already been there. It has already been through all
Shostakovich's quartets. The group has already created a song cycle with
Elvis Costello. So when the
Brodsky records here with
Sting and
Björk and
Meredith Monk, it's not as if it's making a crossover record. It's just the
Brodsky making a record. As a record, Moodswings shines brightly on each track and coheres brilliantly as a whole. From the setting of
Sting's "Until..." to
Björk's "I've Seen It All" to
Monk's "Gotham Lullaby," every performance is sweet, swinging, and soulful. But when framed by
Brodsky and
Costello performing
Costello's own manic "Moodswings" plus
Randy Newman's affecting "Real Emotional Girl" set to the Adagio from
Beethoven's A minor String Quartet, Moodswings is an exciting, introspective, and above all, cogent record. The sound of the
Brodsky Quartet on Brodsky Records is astonishingly present and real. When
Costello whispers the last word of "Real Emotional Girl," he might as well be whispering in your ear.