Morcheeba Searching for Truth in the Mix

“I’m most interested in people writing heartfelt songs that move me,” says Paul Godfrey, the percussionist, mixer and lyricist for the English trio Morcheeba. “On the whole, I just like honesty, you know?”

Morcheeba’s single, “Trigger Hippie,” certainly takes a frighteningly honest look at a serious subject--the struggle to reconcile violent tendencies and a desire for love. But it softens the impact under layers of languorous guitar, electric beats, hip-hop scratching and sensual vocals. The blend of organic and electronic sounds on Morcheeba’s debut album, “Who Can You Trust?” (on Discovery Records), has earned the band (which headlines at the El Rey Theatre tonight) comparisons to such British trip-hop acts as Portishead and Tricky.

Such tracks as “Moog Island” and “Small Town” do have the languid flow and grinding industrial percussion of trip-hop, but Morcheeba’s music also veers into vastly different territory, resulting in such surprises as the slide-drenched, noise-battered blues guitar interlude “Enjoy the Wait” and the campy, ‘60s-spy-movie groove of “End Theme.”

Ultimately, the musical dynamic of the trio--which also includes younger Godfrey brother Ross on guitars and keyboards and sable-voiced singer Skye Edwards--more closely recalls Garbage: a couple of studio wizards-musicians creating textured hybrids of traditional rock and electronica, and a tantalizing blend of earthy and ethereal vocals wafting overhead.

Godfrey allows that the rising profile of electronic music has helped generate U.S. interest in Morcheeba, but he cuts off speculation about the genre’s commercial potential or its possible long-term effects on the landscape of pop music: “To tell the truth, I’m really not [expletive] interested.”

What does hold sway over the Godfreys is their fundamental belief in the power of music to provide sanctuary and healing. Growing up, the brothers found refuge from childhood troubles in their parents’ diverse record collection, which included dub reggae, folk, rock, blues and soul LPs. Ross, now 20, fell in love with blues guitar, while Paul took to funk and hip-hop and got into mixing and sampling. In 1994, the brothers hooked up with Edwards, a former fashion designer who was then fronting a funk band.

Unlike most electronic acts, the Godfreys write songs on guitar, then build the tracks up in the studio. “Instead of sampling directly from a record,” Paul Godfrey says, “we’re sampling styles.”

Paul’s subtly shifting sonic textures complement Ross’ broad vocabulary of guitar licks, while Edwards’ imperturbable vocals throw Paul’s misery-spiked lyrics into delightfully sharp relief. The result is a three-dimensional mix that seems to create not just moods, but actual space. The listener stays intrigued, wondering what will take shape next.

Morcheeba has been gradually raising its U.S. profile, making converts on tours with Live and Fiona Apple. And it so intrigued one listener--former Talking Heads leader David Byrne--that he asked the Godfreys to co-produce nine tracks for his next album. Working with Byrne at their studio, Godfrey says, completed a cycle of sorts for the brothers: “The first demo we ever recorded when we bought our first four-track was [the Talking Heads’] ‘Burning Down the House,’ and our very first band played ‘Psycho Killer’ and stuff like that.”

As fascinated as Byrne was by the brothers’ fervent cut-and-paste production style, Godfrey notes with a laugh that their musicianship is what motivated the veteran artist to bring them in. “He kind of said that we were the only trip-hop band that could change chords.”

* Morcheeba and Guadaloop play tonight at the El Rey Theatre, 5515 Wilshire Blvd., 8 p.m. $15. (213) 936-4790.