Music RECORDS
DREAM-POP BEACH HOUSE Bloom (Bella Union) ●●●●●
With 2010’s immersive Teen Dream, Baltimore two-piece Beach House went from American indie try-hards to one of the most critically acclaimed bands of the year. In twinkling melodies, cruising mid-tempo drum beats and a gauzy cathedral-haze of reverb, French vocalist/ keyboardist Victoria Legrand and guitarist Alex Scally found their sound, and they’re agreeably sticking to it on Bloom.
The duo’s fourth album shows a band in control of their craft. Sure, it’s formulaic – opener ‘Myth’ sets the tone with its peeling-keys arpeggio, effects-embellished fretwork and almost genderless vocals stretching out lazily. You could run these 10 tracks back-to-back with Teen Dream and not spot the joins. But this pair’s capacity for heavenly hooks – the featherlight choral vocal motif of ‘Lazuli’, the janglesome guitar runs in ‘The Hours’ – keeps Bloom always enriching, as one celestial slow-jam melts into another.
It’s the latest fine album from a long line of American bands who trade more in atmosphere than verses and choruses. Beach House will need to change things next time round, but for now, they offer boundless pleasure and heart-trembling grace. (Malcolm Jack)
DISCO, LO-FI POP THE CHROMATICS Kill For Love (Italians Do It Better) ●●●●●
The Chromatics’ follow-up to 2007’s Night Drive has been one of the most anticipated albums of the year and, after countless delays with its release, it’s mostly been worth the wait. At 90 minutes, Kill For Love does try a little too hard, opening with a curious cover of Neil Young’s ‘Into the Black’ before a series of prolonged instrumental numbers. But filler aside, the hits make this release utterly infectious, whether it be the title track with its echoes of New Order in their prime or the new romantic melancholy of ‘Back From the Grave’ and the late-night vogueing chic of ‘The Lady’.
The premature loss in
momentum stalls an otherwise solid pop contender but, once it hits its stride, Kill For Love takes off sprinting. (Nick Herd)
MINIMAL POP JULIA HOLTER Tragedy (Night School) ●●●●●
Perhaps you read that album title and started hollering the Bee Gees song or, God forbid, Steps. Thank the stars, then, for LA composer and minimalist pop diviner Julia Holter, who will banish your garish disco horrors with celestial drones, mesmeric synths, ambient noise and unearthly vocals. Tragedy is Holter’s official debut and is now enjoying a full-release after a limited run last year (and a sublime follow-up in last month’s Ekstasis). Unfurling itself as a suite based around Euripides’ Ancient Greek play Hippolytus, and featuring wonder-filled track titles like ‘Try To Make Yourself a Work of Art’, this fascinating, capricious LP proves that while she may be a contemporary of Nite Jewel and Ariel Pink, there is no one quite like Holter. (Nicola Meighan)
PSYCH-FOLK CATE LE BON Cyrk (OVNI) ●●●●●
AFRO HOUSE AUNTIE FLO Future Rhythm Machine (Huntleys + Palmer) ●●●●● DANCE/ TECHNO LONE Galaxy Garden (R&S) ●●●●●●
POP MONARCHY MADONNA MDNA (Live Nation) ●●●●●
For her latest outing, Cate Le Bon takes her pick of the current crop of fine Welsh musicians. H Hawkline provides hypnotically undulating synth goodness, while Y Niwl’s wünderkind Sion Glynn weaves beautifully meandering melodies.
The darkly romantic tone of 2010’s magnificent ‘Me Oh My’ is evident on the mesmeric waltz ‘Greta’ but, from the opening stomp of ‘Falcon Eyed’, there’s a confidence that sets it apart from its more melancholy predecessor. As idiosyncratic as you’d hope, with an appearance from a school recorder and Cate doing her finest Eric Dolphy sax impersonation on the climactic ‘Ploughing Out (Part 2)’, this is a brilliantly textured 35- minute slice of Welsh psychedelic folk genius. (Alan McMillan)
Brian d’Souza coyly denies this is his full-length album debut. Trading under the name of Auntie Flo, the originator of Glasgow’s Highlife night points out that Future Rhythm Machine predates his debut singles ‘Highlife’ and ‘Oh My Days’. But as one of Glasgow’s foremost new electronic producers, he doesn’t get off the hook so easily. This isn’t a perfect collection, but at its best – the deep 80s electro- funk groove of ‘I Haven’t Got Any Body’; the amped-up tribal rave of the excellent ‘I Want to Blow Your Mind’ featuring Esa Williams; and the shuffling ambient township rattle ‘Train’ – he shows himself to be a thrilling new talent who’s bringing influences together like nobody else right now. (David Pollock)
He may be just a tender 27, but Matt Cutler is already on his fourth album recorded as Lone. Galaxy Garden is a musical departure from its hip hop, 80s boogie and rare groove-inspired predecessors, Lemuria and Ecstasy & Friends. This time, the Nottingham producer ups the tempo and draws more heavily on the sounds of Detroit techno, Chicago house and early 90s rave. Making more use of rhythmic,
percussive elements, he balances tracks such as ‘Lying In The Reeds’, ‘Crystal Caverns 1991’ and ‘Raindance’ with soaring melodies. It’s an enjoyable release that highlights the resurgence of R&S, the legendary Ghent-formed label, since its 2008 relaunch. (Colin Chapman)
Kudos to 53-year-old Auntie Madge not for delivering a classic album, but for having the sheer brass she- balls to turn out a record that’s as clubby, sexy and designed for the dancefloor after midnight as any she’s produced. With a title that nods to naughty substances, she’s off into Benny Benassi-produced slices of TopShop techno, as ‘Girl Gone Wild’ and ‘I’m Addicted’, bookend the dirty dubstep dry- hump of ‘Gang Bang’. The breezy pop of ‘Turn Up the Radio’ and perfunctory appearances by Nicki Minaj and MIA aside, the record’s first half is upbeat but predictable. Despite their more mellow nature, it’s only the closing quartet with old accomplice William Orbit that begin to hint at past glories. (David Pollock)
82 THE LIST 26 Apr–24 May 2012