Album Review: Full Tote Odds - Place Your Bets

The debut from Adelaide Hills hip hop foursome Full Tote Odds not only lands them squarely amongst the soulful samples and catchy beats of the refreshing urban sound of 2012, Place Your Bets ushers the veteran collective straight through the door to front up as serious contenders alongside fellow southerly brethren Hilltop Hoods and Funkoars. Made up of members from Train Of Thought and metal band Headbore as well as industry stalwart Ross Read, FTO have placed themselves in prime position for punters to take note of the new kids on the block.

A couple of singles are already in the bag, the most played being Southern Wind featuring young chanteuse Taylor Jones and What's Going Down with Jack Radford's Motown-like vocals. The former's atmospheric and manipulated voice is thoughtfully stretched over dynamic synths and the boys' structured deliveries. The latter is fresh and funky despite practically being etched into consciousness, Radford's sassy drawl interrupting ballpark keys and clever rhyming. There's clearly an influence from the Hilltop boys skewing things pretty strongly on opener Ain't Coming Down with the main vocal drenched in that natural evenness and direct delivery, but it's always nice to hear that Aussie twang, ever present in the very Aussie sentiment of Sick Day.

Musically, there's a healthy dose of diversity with soulful vocalists, flamenco guitars and horn flourishes alongside DJ scratches in the upbeat single-worthy Feeling Alright. Where FTO get it most right is in continuing to experiment, thereby making the album as a whole interesting and worthy of a holistic listen rather than for simply its very likeable single releases. Definitely ones to watch.