Over the course of her first three albums, the ongoing narrative thread of Karen Mantler's music concerned her beloved cat Arnold. 1996's Farewell, written and recorded following her pet's death, concerned the young singer and pianist's grieving process, but life does go on, and four years later, Karen Mantler's Pet Project is a far more lighthearted affair covering the decision to get a new pet. This is by some distance Mantler's most playful and musically accessible album; indeed, it's easy to imagine a parent of some fairly hip and musically aware children using it to introduce their kids to modern creative jazz. As a result, some will likely find the album too whimsical for words. A song cycle discussing the pros and cons of adopting an increasingly unlikely series of animals, Mantler's faux-naïf lyrics are sung by herself and members of her band (including vocalist Eric Mingus, guitarist Hiram Bullock, and for a few lines, her mother Carla Bley) with the utter guilelessness they demand, over settings that range from small-band progressive jazz to Brazilian rhythms to something almost akin to straightforward pop music. Karen Mantler's Pet Project is the sort of album that must be recommended with caveats, as the more self-important jazz fan may well find it unbearably cutesy, and Mantler's musical interests don't lie in the same experimental range as her mother or her equally legendary father Michael Mantler. This is more for fans of the quirkier end of art rock and modern jazz, along the lines of Laurie Anderson or perhaps Nellie McKay. ~ Stewart Mason, Rovi

1		My Cat Armold Is Dead
2		A New Pet
3		Wild or Tame?
4		Turtles
5		Life Is Sheep
6		Go Fish
7		Why Not Bear?
8		Love Birds
9		Shedding
10		Aardvark to Zebra

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