Their first single "I'm Not In Love" is at the top of the club play scene, however this is a remake of a classic, which shows no comparison to the original.

When a group comes out with a new album and their first single is a remake classic i.e. Ace of Base "Cruel Summer", you know you have a poor compilation on your hands if the first single cannot be original music.

The rest of the songs continue with the same mundane sound through the whole entire album with "Trickle", "Love Affair", etc. Unfortunately the dismal remake of the classic "I'm Not In Love" is the really only high point on this album.

I give it 2 stars instead of 1 because it is not absolute trash.

A fair CD at best, I say pick up "Extra Virgin" and skip this electronic bore.

open your ears, you might like it
After listening to this CD I got hooked and couldn't stop! Even the few more mellow songs that I thought weren't up to speed with the rest of the album soon grew irresistable to my ears. If you don't like the lyrics the music will more than make up for it- Olive's blend of pop/electronic is so harmonious and entrancing that they keep you coming back for more! Lush vocals and riveting guitar riffs carry "Trickle" to its climax. The brave boasts of layered trumpets and synth beats opening "Push" meld the haunting harmonies throughout the song into a unique and catchy personality. "Love Affair" also stands strong with its addicting chorus.

Every song has layers of original and captivating sound thanks to Tim Kellett. He even manages a fresh remake with "I'm not in Love", a brave and unique mix of the original in its own right. Besides the music, the real captivation of Olive is Ruth-Ann's smoothly sublime voice. To some it may seem not too boisterous or extreme, but it's one of the best things about Olive. This moody blend of beats, luscious harmonies and pulsing undertones will always be a fave of mine. If you're into synth and pop, give this Olive album a listen!

A different kind of love
Yes, this is different then Olive's first album, Extra Virgin. Do I love it any less? Do I love it any more? No. I simply love it differently.

While Extra Virgin was very much rooted in eccletic drum-n-bass beats, Trickle is more of a pop trip-hop affair .... one, i might add, composed beautifully. Ruth Ann's voice, once again, is deliciously palpable; I can think of few vocals as lucious and sweet as hers. The melodies in Trickle are more agreeable to airplay. Some may regard the new sound as more commercialized, but I humbly suggest these people are missing the finer points of this album. This is a marginally more up-beat album, and Olive makes no apologies for shedding some (note: not all) of the darker melodies of Extra Virgin. Their emotive expression has been perfectly preserved in slightly altered form; the lyrics of Trickle are more articulate, Ruth Ann's voice more refined, arrangements more calculated.

The bottom line is the beauty of Olive's first child is not lost on me with their new creation. Different? Without question (although not to the degree some reviewers here have expressed or implied). But Trickle must still be regarded as a beautiful album .... one that may likely appeal to a bigger audience then did Extra Virgin. Nothing wrong with that.

It's a different band.
I always thought Extra Virgin was very unique and it really captured my attention on every song. It's hard to explain, but in essence it was a beautiful masterpiece. Trickle is not that great when you compare it to Extra Virgin, but it is catchy. It seems like they really didn't explore sound possibilites on this one and instead tried to play it safe by not going out on a limb. All I can say is....listen to Extra Virgin and then to Trickle, you'd think it was a different band all together except for the voice.

"I would have definitley done this differently"
It is obvious that this band really doesn't have what it takes outside of there Drum N Bass attempts/collaborations. This isn't a Trip Hop album this is a POP album that is extremeley boring. There are no stand out beats with the exception of "Love Affair and The Single" Which I forgot the name of! This is the most middle of the road lack of soul or creative effort I have ever heard! This guy obviously doesn't listen to alot of different types of music. If I had to guess his cd collection consist odf mostly techno and rock/country music. Most Trip Hoppers offer a variety of influences in there music. This sounds like the Natalie Imbruglia of Trip Hop! This is O.K, but I would have done it differently, everything with the exception of the two tracks I mentioned would have been the first to go! And I just would have started over again and worked with some other people! Run from this, unless you like bland Pop, this album is the biggest Turkey in Trip Hop next to Morcheeba's generic latest attempts!

Try

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Lamb - What Sound

Mono-Formica blues
As electronic music has been swallowed and spit back out by conventional pop, rock, and rap artists since the 1990s, the distinctions between what is techno and what is just studio-tweaked amplified guitar rock has noticeably blurred. While not as adventurous in those explorations of trip-hop and electronic music as contemporaries like Everything but the Girl or Sneaker Pimps, Olive nevertheless display a marvelous agility integrating a conventionally charming pop-rock sense with a more modern sound. With their hearts fully planted in verse-chorus-verse formats and big, hummable choruses, they still manage to twist their songs around deep, pulsing bass lines and rhythmically motivated transitions. The result is daringly melodic and accessible, yet every time the songs threaten to become too straight for their own good, bursts of electronica around the edges spice up the mix once again. Take the first song on the record, the blissed-out "Love Affair." Rhythmic depth in the chorus accentuates a simple chorus just enough, providing the spring that catapults the melody's hook into your brain. Light drum & bass colors "I'm Not in Love," a straightforward pop song save for the herky-jerky cadences and swirling keyboards that make it sound suddenly transcendent. Detractors could see Olive's music as a dumbed-down trip-hop for the masses, more "trip-pop" than Tricky. Still, when it's done with this much panache, regardless of whether it's a move forward or a move back, it's undeniably a lovely ride. --Matthew Cooke