Alvin and the Chipmunks Review

[jerrah]

The Chipmunks may have been CGI-ized but the helium-distorted, super-high-pitched singing style of Alvin, Simon and Theodore has been preserved. If you have kids or are a kid at heart (with a special fondness for novelty tunes), this is a goldmine. The 'munk classic "The Chipmunk Song (Christmas, Don’t Be Late)" is covered twice: the "DeeTown OG Mix" is a fairly faithful version, while the "DeeTown Rock Mix" goes the emo-lite route; another nugget, "Witch Doctor," also gets dusted up, with the addition of a so-so rap. Nice bonus: The 1958 versions of these two songs are included as well, for old times' sake. Newer tracks are just as zany. The CD starts off with a take on David Powter's hit "Bad Day," which sounds completely insane done Chipmunk-style; "Funky Town" is downright hair-rising. The DeeTown Syndicate not only produced it all but also contributes several songs of its own that waffle between corny hip-hop ("How We Roll") and contempo Disney Channel style ("Coast 2 Coast"). It's all really nutty and really fun. --Elisabeth Vincentelli