Following up on 2007's debut EP, THE DISTANT FUTURE, the full-length FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS features songs from the first season of the New Zealand musical comedy duo's HBO series. Only the brilliant Barry White parody, "Business Time," is duplicated from the EP, although two of its live songs, "Robots" and "The Most Beautiful Girl in the Room" (featuring the surefire come-on "You could be a part-time model/But you'd probably have to keep your normal job"), are given the full studio treatment.

What makes FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS better than either the average television soundtrack or the average musical comedy album is that even aside from the sharp wit and often hilarious lyrics (see: "A Kiss Is Not A Contract" and "Ladies of the World"), singers and multi-instrumentalists Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement are genuinely gifted pop songwriters able to craft tuneful, memorable songs in a variety of styles. The genre parodies here, from the gibberish bossa nova "Foux da Fafa" and the deadpan rap clich?s of "Hiphopoptamous Vs. Rhymenoceros" to the note-perfect impersonations of the Pet Shop Boys ("Inner City Pressure") and David Bowie ("Bowie"), are more than catchy enough to stand on their own.

Uncut (p.95) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Multi-instrumentalist Bret McKenzie possesses a musical gift commensurate with his comedic talent..."

Q (Magazine) (p.138) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "Bret McKenzie and Jermaine Clement are indeed funny, but over the course of an album they're musical enough to withstand repeated plays."