Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi are at home with ‘Rome’

Pop producer Danger Mouse and Italian composer Daniele Luppi collaborate on an album inspired by spaghetti westerns.

 

A shared passion can often spawn a friendship, but in the case of pop producer Danger Mouse and Italian composer Daniele Luppi, their mutual love of classic ’60s and ’70s Ennio Morricone scores and spaghetti westerns spawned that and much more. What began with pals swapping favorite rare records and vintage films became a five-year musical collaboration culminating in “Rome,” an ambitious album named after the Italian capital where they did most of the recording.

The acclaimed 15-track record, which has received praise from Entertainment Weekly, the Chicago Tribune and others, features several musicians who performed on Morricone’s most famous scores, including “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” and “Once Upon a Time in the West,” as well as distinct vocal turns by Jack White and Norah Jones. It showcases an unexpected side of Danger Mouse, the Grammy-winning producer and composer (born Brian Burton) whose credits include the soulful pop stylings of Gnarls Barkley and the jangly indie pop of Broken Bells. The L.A.-based Burton, however, says the process it felt like the most natural thing in the world.

Album review: Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi's 'Rome'

What Sofia Coppola did for narcotic noise-pop in “Lost in Translation,” Danger Mouse and composer Daniele Luppi try to do for magic-hour orchestral R&B on the soundtrack to “Rome.” As a divergence for four super-talented, super-connected artists — Jack White and Norah Jones star in the film and make vocal cameos here — it’s diverting enough, and occasionally nails a bellini-sodden ennui enlivened by sly funk. But while the sounds are fantastic, the compositions tend to slip by, just another Mediterranean sunset.

The softest stuff works unexpectedly best here. “Season’s Trees” runs the canyon folk of Love through a tastefully reserved string section and a bassline right out of Bowie’s best. Jones’ kind of anonymous inflection actually fits this mood perfectly.

Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi conquer Rome, with Jack White in tow

Danger Mouse may take his name from an animated rodent, but his track record of collaborations suggests he's closer to Voltron.

Over the last decade, the producer born Brian Burton has worked with everyone from underground rappers such as Gemini and MF Doom to indie icons Sparklehorse and James Mercer (the Shins), to cartoon band Gorillaz, to dirty bluesmen the Black Keys.

Predicting the artistic trajectory of the man behind the Grey Album is futile; he's constantly reforming and refracting expectations. Of course, his latest project with Italian composer Daniele Luppi has been subject to a five-year engagement -- with the last six months bearing promises of futuristic spaghetti western fusion featuring Jack White. And over the last few weeks, the vows have finally begun to be uttered.