Portland Cello Project: Homage

Homage is the latest from the Portland Cello Project and it cements their reputation as one of the most inventive collectives going in contemporary music. Their closest relative, the Vitamin String Quartet, has a knack for choosing the right songs to cover but they rarely deviate from the arrangements. What makes Portland Cello Project so unique is their unique arrangements when taking on songs they cull from pop culture. For instance, one of the most effective tracks here is “Fugue On A Monstrous Theme”, which is a composition stemming from Kanye West’s “Monster”. It’s a moment of pure invention on a record that’s populated by almost nothing but. It’s also nice to hear that no matter what the setting, Outkast’s “Hey Ya!” remains as irresistible as ever.