Twink, the Toy Piano Band! Twink, the Toy Piano Band!

Review of Miniatures Volume 2 by Kai Nobuko from Yeah I Know It Sucks

Twink is the handsome music maker with a fondness of toy pianos and all round cuteness. A while ago he released a series called Miniatures and the picture pictured above is the cover of Volume 2. Which is not unlike Volume 1; of a joyful kind but as it's the 10th release of Twink I thought it would be best to give it the extra attention it so deserves. The album starts with the adventurous "Adventure Day" which made me feel like being a little kid again exploring the kitchen cabinet for the very first time without parental oversight. Teacups, teaspoons, sugar cubes, cookie jars; nothing is safe in this joyful adventure and the music of Twink fits this thought perfectly. It's like the bookcase of Narnia, only here we disappear in the miniature world of Twink for a grand party of glitter toys.

From here we walk in to the second miniature named "Trunk and Tail" which is a melodic place to dress up for. Perhaps a costume inspired on the horsey-zebra that is projected on the front cover; it will certainly have to look cute with a jolly tail attached to it. Twink style! It also should have enough comfort as not to disturb the possible dance movements that are going to be made while we are dressed for the part. The music builds up in a cozy sweet way, but will definitely bring the energy of colorful lollypops later on. This will make listeners (dressed up or not) toe tapping and twirling around in happy circles. The boyish mood of free body-movements is not going to stop when the fleas of the "Flea Circus" come in and start to tickle you straight into a funny dancing frenzy.

Twink's miniature music gets us to meet all kind of characters and one of them is the "Spooky Goose", who parades with a rewindable feather tail and quacks a bit like a duck. The introduction is fantastic, stepping around on the more fanatic sounding bassline; but after the mysterious introduction the goose throws all the darkness in a corner to show some lovely pirouettes. The "Lucky Punch" made by Twink is one that gives some great happy side effects to all who attend this party of miniatures. It's like the feeling of butterflies in the belly, and shoulders are loosened up to get conversations going while tumbling around in toy land.

If the fleas and the "Spooky Goose" wasn't enough companionship to be happy about; a true royalty also joins the party. This is "Princess Monster" who wherever she goes demands fanatic handclaps complimenting every move she makes. Luckily her pretty face shines and glows in the playfulness. The lizards that step behind her are almost outdone in her presence, but the music that these friendly fellows make when they slide over the red carpet is mesmerizing enough to feel the exciting micro vibrations on the children friendly floor.

The little feeling of glitter, of cutlery ticking each other and plates being smacked in a bombastic stamping groove really comes out when the gigantic "Snapdragon" comes in. The large footsteps are placed gracefully loud and all eyes are on this ludic character until it disappears in the back room. A last strange looking character seems to step around while more cutlery sounds are thrown in for a funky moment of toy piano coolness. This is the soundtrack for an "Egg Thief" and this bend over walking character is obviously searching for eggs left behind by the Spooky Goose and the Snapdragon's behinds.

Then the album stops... reality kicks back in and I can only say "WOW!" This miniatures world of Twink is not only his 10th release and downloadable for free; it's also a gateway to a completely different world were all is cute, slightly bizarre, but above all very intriguing and friendly. Enjoy!

See All Press