01	Voodoo Mon Amour						04:31
	02	Guerrilla Laments						04:55
	03	Kevlar Sweethearts						04:24
	04	Hot To Organize A Lynch Mob						00:53
	05	Black Box Messiah						02:57
	06	Exit Strategy Of A Wrecking Ball						06:01
	07	Aurora						05:05
	08	Mass Rapture						06:03
	09	Honey Trap Aftermath						04:15
	10	Of Kali Ma Calibre						04:25
	11	Justice For Saint Mary						08:17

One of the most anticipated albums for me this year was Pandora's Pinata (and with good reason it seems). Comparing the release to Diablo Swing Orchestra's previous releases, one can see much progression. As far the album goes, this band has lived up to and surpassed my expectations. So much so have they surpassed the required adequacy needed to impress, that this album has become, even so early on in the year, quite possibly my favourite for 2012.

Before remarking upon the individual tracks which make up such a brilliant piece of work, one must examine the genres crossed. Diablo Swing Orchestra has a vibrant past of eclecticism, from the Russian-esque opera, classical violins and Latin trumpets in “Sing Along Songs for the Damned and Delirious”, to more of the classical influence, electronic and traditional Australian aboriginal music in “The Butcher's Ballroom” (among many other styles in both, respectively). Pandora's Pinata is not much different, with a huge array of genres crossed. One genre in particular that I noticed was not experimented with in previous albums until this one, was more traditional oriental Asian music featuring violin (or quite possibly the Erhu) in the middle of the album. With this new style came back the older, yet still somehow new styles the band dabbled in (more or less) including classical, opera, mariachi, funk, soundtrack epics, swing, electronic, jazz, music of Ireland, metal, classical pseudo-opera, Gypsy-style, and many others.

Here is a breakdown of the tracks examined:

“Voodoo Mon Amour” was the original opening track of this album. And what an opening track it is. Clearly played from a swing-beat, it features jazzy trumpets (bordering on the mariachi/Latin trumpet music later on), hard guitar riffing indicative of metal music, and pseudo-operatic vocals. A beautiful opening track that leaves the ordinary listener in a disarray, as far as identifying the band's genre goes.

“Guerillas Laments” begins with a drum break playing in an offbeat, unconventional triplet base/4/4 pattern. It then features more mariachi trumpet, mixed in with heavy riffs by the guitar. Beautiful, as well as eclectic.

“Kevlar Sweethearts” begins quite beautifully with violins playing and the drums accenting. Then, more trumpets playing more solemnly. During the vocalist break, a guitar begins to play with the violins following and the drums playing softer on the snare. The scales played, as well as the style are indicative of traditional Irish folk during these breaks, although this is not the true centrepiece of the song. Wonderfully executed, as well as quite subtle regarding stylistic influence.

“How to Organize a Lynch Mob” features a main violin (including a harmonizing one) trying to mimic the traditional Chinese playing of the Erhu. A breathtaking interlude to “Black Box Messiah”, which also draws on the oriental Asian style of music, among others.

“Black Box Messiah” features a distorted guitar playing an oriental scale, while lightly accented by what sounds like a flute in the background. The trumpets come in blaring, indicative of jazz music while also being accented by the flute in an very oriental style. The vocals come in with children singing in what sounds like Cantonese, Mandarin, or possibly Japanese. The violins have a brief also orientally scaled part in there after the vocals. The piece was somewhat difficult to unravel, as there is so much going on. Even so, this piece was beautifully written, and one of the best on the album.

“Exit Strategy of a Wrecking Ball” features some more metal-influenced guitars mixed in with accentation by what sounds like a cello. The drums play hard in what seems to be a metal-rock fusion with some offbeat accentation indicative to more technical styles of rock and jazz. It features a brief electronic-synthy bit in there as well. This track is very emotional with violins playing over the chorus in a very dramatic way. The trumpets come in at the end and wrap the piece up rather nicely.

“Aurora” features bells coming in, including violins playing over the vocals. More percussion becomes noticeable as the violins switch to a more staccato style of playing. The whole piece is written in a operatic structure. This features not just strings, but also the guitar playing in a very distinct Spanish-style, Congo drums playing along later, then the violins coming in in what sounds like a Gypsy-style fashion, playing a harmonic minor scale at the very end, and all of the instruments coming together to formulate a true mimic of an abridged, modernized, classic opera movement (though much more eclectic).

“Mass Rapture” begins with the violins playing in a Gypsy-style way, again playing in harmonic minor scales with some background harmonies and vocals hinting at a more “middle-eastern” influenced style of playing when looking at the scales and tone used. There is a break where trumpets begin playing over vocals in a jazzy style yet again, breaking down again into a more “middle-eastern”, Balkan style of playing. Mixed in with operatic vocals at the end, this creates a beautiful piece that stays in your mind long after the track stops playing.

“Honey Trap Aftermath” is beautiful in the sense that it crosses three completely different genres in under twenty seconds. First, the violins come in in a classical style, played over a very funky drum beat. This soon moves into the trumpet mariachi music again. Featuring swing-like vocals, later trumpets playing more jazzy, beautiful and mixed vocals (from conventional to choir-like), and a very subtle reference to older country music in one of the violin parts, “Honey Trap Aftermath” makes one feel terrible about the fact that this album is almost over.

“Of Kali Ma Calibre” features a very strong trumpet intro with yet more Latin style in them for the opening. It also contains subtle guitar and hard drums in the beginning. The song breaks down quickly into a rhythmic march with trumpets and operatic vocals. This shows more of the symphonic-epic style of Diablo Swing Orchestra. As soon as this reaches its pinnacle, the drums start playing in a metal-style indicative to the heavier genres of metal while opera vocals blare over top. Moving into more trumpet stuff, it features a part in there where the drummer preforms a blast-beat very common in black metal music (for this particular blast-beat), exhibiting their connections to heavier metal music. This once again breaks down into more vocals with violins underneath. This repeats one last time, and comes to a close. A beautifully energetic track that shows their dedication to their music.

“Justice for Saint Mary”, probably one that will blow your mind. Starting off with a guitar playing, and strings harmonizing, the guitar it lets off a sinister sound. Going onto the beautiful vocals accented by strings, the piece progresses through more guitar, epic string, and trumpet parts to the the ending. It then starts off with the strings playing in a very classical, emotional and sinister manor, featuring some chromaticism and dissonance. This continues as the drums come in in a very heavy 4/4 fashion. As the track reaches its end, the piece begins to break into a very electronic and glitchy (Glitch: subgenre of electronic music) that absolutely kills the album in a wonderfully euphoric way. It inevitably fades into silence, making you crave more.

It is almost impossible to judge what Diablo Swing Orchestra puts out there, as it is so masterful, it is difficult to comprehend the majority of the time. Even with the musical knowledge that I possess, I found it challenging to break down an album such as this. I cannot give this album anything but the highest mark that it could possibly achieve, as there was absolutely nothing wrong with this album, and as it is a true representation of what pure art sounds like.

So go out and listen to the album already!