Teddybears - Soft Machine

Teddybears
Soft Machine
Atlantic Records
Grade: A-

This record comes the way of ‘where the fuck did this come from?’ and ‘who the hell are Teddybears?’ After various twists and turns as a band, Teddybears are three guys from Stockholm, Sweden who are in essence a crack production team that align and craft scores of musical sounds into uber-catchy electronic songs. You’ve likely already heard a couple of these songs as they’ve been featured in commercials, particularly “Cobrastyle” featuring Mad Cobra. Yes, you know “Cobrastyle” with its big block beats and Mad Cobra’s dance-hall vocals throughout. But, Mad Cobra isn’t the only guest on Soft Machine as Teddybears utilize an array of guests for vocals – adding to their image as a production team. Other mind-blowing songs include the electronic-tipped “Different Sound” featuring Malte, the super pop of “Yours to Keep” with Neneh Cherry and Annie, the club-bouncing “Are You Feelin’ It” featuring Elephant Man, the appropriately named “Punkrocker” with wild-eyed Iggy Pop adding his quirky throated love, and Daddy Boastin’ on “Ahead of My Time.” The future is extremely bright for Teddybears.