The East Village Opera Company

1	Overture (Le Nozze Di Figaro) Redux 4:07
2	Nessun Dorma Redux 4:31
3	Flower Duet Redux 4:42
4	La Donna È Mobile Redux 4:56
5	Un Bel Di Redux 4:12
6	Au Fond du Temple Saint Redux 4:34
7	I Mio Babbino Caro Redux 5:54
8	Ebben? Ne Andró Lontana Redux 5:13
9	Che Gelida Manina Redux 5:21
10	Habanera (Carmen) Redux 4:54
11	When I Am Laid in Earth Redux 5:19
12	E Lucevan le Stelle Redux 5:03

Barnes & Noble

The great thing about opera -- once you get rid of the lavish sets, the implausible plots, and the fat lady wearing a Viking helmet -- is the abundance of beautiful melodies, pure and simple. That's why so many arias were pop hits in their day, and that's why singers like the Three Tenors have become pop icons in our time. It's also why the East Village Opera Company is worth your attention now. Though it draws from 7 different composers (and 12 operas), this troupe's self-titled debut album unfolds like an hour-long opera, from curtain-raising overture (Mozart's Marriage of Figaro) through romance (most of the five Puccini excerpts) and lust (Bizet's Carmen, naturally) to tragic end (the lament from Purcell's Dido and Aeneas). The idea of "East Village Opera" may remind you of the rock musical Rent, which borrowed its story from La Bohème, and that's a fair point of reference. The EVOC's arrangements turn the tunes into everything from arena rock anthems ("Nessun dorma") to trip-hop ballads ("O mio babbino caro"), but they show far more respect for the classical originals than other crossover groups like Bond or Amici Forever. Skeptics and purists beware: "Un bel dì" gets the tear ducts flowing just as easily with synths and electric guitars as it does with an orchestra. Best of all, the vocals turn out to be the EVOC's trump card. Lead singer Tyley Ross has an expressive and surprisingly supple voice, and even though AnnMarie Milazzo can sing him under the table with sheer power, their duets (the "Flower Duet" from Lakmé and Bizet's "Au fond du temple saint") are the album's standout tracks. Much classical crossover is (at best) a guilty pleasure, but the EVOC's playful ingenuity offers all the pleasure of opera and pop alike, and with a clear conscience to boot. Scott Paulin

All Music Guide

If you think The Who had the last word in rock opera and that Queen was the end all in operatic pop, The East Village Opera Company -- a powerhouse five-piece band with a string quartet and two compelling vocalists -- will have you rethinking those precepts. The success of foreign-language-driven pop by Josh Groban and Il Divo no doubt made it possible for this unique outfit to adapt some of these opera classics into a 21st century context. The Mozart-composed overture (from "Le Nozze di Figaro") has some of those Who-like synthesizer speckles over an insistent drumbeat before a blistering rock assault begins, which is sort of like paying homage to one of the great sources of the concept. Though the first-time listener who is not an opera fan may not know all the original titles (whose composers include Puccini, Verdi, and Bizet), it's a great introduction to the art form because each track is performed at full length and in the original languages. The best of these are the synth-metal jam "La Donna e Mobile" from Rigoletto, a soulful and symphonic sweep through "Habanera" from Carmen (which should ring a bell), and "Nessun Dorma" from Turandot. The East Village Opera Company was co-founded by lead singer Tyley Ross and arranger/multi-instrumentalist Peter Kiesewalter. They assembled a full-on rock band, adding two guitars, bass, and drums to Kiesewalter's keyboards, then synched it to a string quartet. A second vocalist, Ann Marie Milazzo, was recruited for explosive duets with Ross and various soaring solos. The project was produced by three-time Grammy winner Neil Dorfsman, with string arrangements recorded in Prague by the Czech Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra. Jonathan Widran

St. Louis Post-Dispatch

An offbeat delight.... "The East Village Opera Company" exudes an unconventional passion. Calvin Wilson