Artist: Stu Walker
Album: Theft, Arson, Vice, Murder and Death
Label: Odd Halo
Tracks: 12
Length: 43:38
Review by: Mike “Burning Love” Leech

I can guarantee you’ve never heard anything quite like this before. Maybe if the spirit of Judy Garland could somehow be summoned up to do vocals on a Soul Junk album, it might... might end up sounding somewhere in this sonic ballpark. Theft, Arson, Vice, Murder and Death (TAVMD), Stu Walker’s oddball debut, will definitely take some getting used to for those of us not in the habit of listening to all of our hip hop, hard core and swing albums at the same time.

Nick Ziampello, the brains behind Stu Walker, combines dark synths, jazzy hip hop beats, big band samples and a dash of electronica to create this dizzying head-trip of a record. TAVMD houses several tracks where this unlikely collage somehow comes out sounding natural and even effortless. The album’s opener and title track, for example, will have you snapping your fingers and belting out its infectious chorus the first time you hear it. “Soul Slinging” is an equally toe-tapping ditty with a nice bombastic trumpet sample. “Leap of Faith” is another standout track with a dark, droning beat that would make DJ Shadow proud. Unfortunately, the rest of TAVMD just sounds a bit too disjointed and awkward to necessitate multiple listens. But hey, at least this guy’s unique.