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Aug 26, 2024 Web Exclusive By Daniel Gard’ner

The last few years have been a tumultuous time for Sarah Tudzin, the LA studio wizard who records under the alias illuminati hotties. She released the mix-tape Free I.H as a contract-breaking gambit in 2020 before allowing Let Me Do One More to see the light of day the following year. Her day job saw her working on several high-profile records for some of indie rock’s biggest names, snagging a Grammy for her expertise. And she rode the wave of emotional extremes in her personal life, experiencing both the loss of her mother to cancer and the discovery of a potent new love. It’s no wonder it’s taken her this long to process this raw material into a new record.

While illuminati hotties is Tudzin’s vehicle alone, the credit list for POWER reads like a small army. Among the faithful is John Congleton, the renowned engineer/producer who has become something of a mentor to Tudzin and who helps shape several of the tracks here. The combined studio know-how is undeniable—the songs are beautifully recorded and polished to a glistening sheen. But while POWER hits with an undeniable immediacy, the bright surfaces of the record can quickly become fatiguing, blunting Tudzin’s sharp edges into a kind of anonymous radio rock.

The album is most compelling when it detours into stranger territory. The quietly chugging guitars and rudimentary drum pattern of “Rot” facilitate a welcome intimacy from Tudzin’s vocal, while the airy arrangement of “Sleeping In” is the perfect framework for her ruminations on new love. And the bombast of “What’s the Fuzz” works because the song feels deliberately skewed, like it could derail at any moment. The potential unravelling is thrilling.

Tudzin is clearly a formidable talent, and there are plenty of sweet spots on POWER. But there is a darker, more mysterious record within her reach. Maybe then we’ll really get to know her. (www.illuminatihotties.bandcamp.com)

Author rating: 7/10