All Bets Are Off is Tamar Aphek's first full-length release as a solo artist, but she's been making music for years as a member of different Israeli bands and as a composer. Maybe that's why her debut album has such a distinctive mix of familiarity and strangeness -- every time it feels like things might be remotely predictable, she changes things up again. "Russian Winter," the dense, knotty rocker that kicks off All Bets Are Off, sounds like it starts in medias res, leaving listeners to play catch-up with her. It's a feeling that extends to nearly every other song here, as Aphek and her band combine touches of punk, psychedelic, and jazz in ever-changing ways. Aphek's style is more flowing and sensual than on her previous EPs Collision and One Week and a Day, whether she's contemplating the serenely spooky mysteries of "All I Know" or letting her guitars and David Gorensteyn's drums coil around her like serpents on "Drive." The album's lone constant -- and often, the eye of its storm -- is Aphek's calmly commanding alto. The coolness in her voice underscores her affinity for jazz and jazz vocalists in the understated vein of Julie London and Peggy Lee, especially on the winking cover of "As Time Goes By" that closes All Bets Are Off. At times, Aphek's blasé attitude feels above it all, as on "Show Me Your Pretty Side," where she displays a feline sense of self-possession among its gnarled guitars and wisps of saxophone. At others, it feels like she's holding back; on "Too Much Information" and "Nothing Can Surprise Me," her wry delivery contains multitudes. Frequently, All Bets Are Off feels like a collection of noir short stories from the femme fatale's point of view. "Stab him with your high heels/Then run," she sighs on "Crossbow," a standout that sounds like a chase scene with no escape. Poised somewhere between elegance and ferocity, All Bets Are Off is an exciting debut from an artist who thrives on the unexpected. ~ Heather Phares, Rovi

1		Russian Winter
2		Show Me Your Pretty Side
3		All I Know
4		Drive
5		Too Much Information
6		Crossbow
7		Beautiful Confusion
8		Nothing Can Surprise Me
9		As Time Goes By

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