I enjoy few moments in life as much as the second I bite into a not-yet-disintegrated Blow-Pop. Impatient as I am, I feel that sucking the lollipop down to its bubblegum center takes far too long. Besides, the hard candy coating intermingling with the super-slippery gum is a taste sensation unlike any other. If any album captures such an experience, it's undoubtedly Towa Tei's third release, Last Century Modern. With its ultra-sweet pop sensibilities, it's not too far from bubblegum, yet there are plenty crunchy electronics to chew on.

While it may not be Towa Tei's most cohesive solo album, it's by far his most consistent. It's easy to compare the Japanese ex-Deee-Lite DJ's work to Pizzicato Five; both create accessible music that values electronic-based high kitsch above all else. However, when their respective new releases are held up to each other, Last Century Modern emerges with a sophistication Pizzicato Five have only achieved through their fashion sense.

Though the record gets off to a rocky start (the waltzing, accordion-based title track), the album slickly takes off and rarely loses momentum. "A Ring" is a loungy romp that recalls Dimitri from Paris at his very best; both "Angel" and "Butterfly" find Tei spinning tongue-in-cheek breakbeats around more lounge fare and Ayumi Tanabe's luscious vocals; and though the instrumental "Stretch Building Bamboo" comes off a bit too obtuse and clunky, Tei more than makes up for it with the production on his remake of the Tom Browne funk classic, "Funkin' for Jamaica." Tei deftly incorporates a bassline infinitely thicker and juicier than the original. And though Wizdom Life's sloppy, brainless "rhymes" threaten to take the song down with them, the seamless chorus harmonies from Les Nubians keep the song afloat.

As great as Tei's stuff is, the real highlight of the record comes with Mighty Bop's remix of "Let Me Know." Whereas the original, which appears earlier in the album, is sluggish and skittery, Mighty Bop's reworking pumps the song up to a bossanova-flavored, mid-tempo dancefloor ballad. The addition of Brazilian guitar, along with more oohs and aahs, help the song achieve greatness. This track is the reason disco balls slow down, shining blue lights on the newly lovestruck.

The vocals on "Know" are handled by fellow Japanese popster Chara, who sounds about four years old. Her overblown cuteness is the only potential low point of the album, seeming calculated to drive the Murder City Devils t-shirt-wearing cynics crazy. I, however, find the sugariness ultimately satisfying and will continue to listen to Last Century Modern until all of my teeth rot out of my head. I hope it's not for a while.

-Richard M. Juzwiak