OFFICIAL: www.TheSuburbsBand.com
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/thesuburbsband
TWITTER:www.twitter.com/thesuburbsband
Written by Ed Price, posted by blog admin
Hailing from Minneapolis, Minnesota, The Suburbs are
a quartet that were a sonic force in the development of the new wave/punk genre
and prove that 40 or so years after their formation they can still deliver the
goods. With noteworthy track to track
variety, excellent musicianship and superb production/mixing, The Suburbs
haven’t lost a single step with record number 7, Hey Muse!
Fans of Joy Division, New Order, The Madness, The
Clash and even Blondie should find a lot to love as each of the album’s 10 tracks
are packed with undeniable melodies and a tight mesh of unique sonic
layers. The title track benefits from
unbreakable staccato drumming with a taut snare placed front n’ center, open
and ringing clean guitar chords, bass lines that travel their own path and
soaring vocal back-ups mixing with the hickory cured baritone leads there is
dance-ability and darkness in equal measure to sink your teeth into. Trading eerie feelings for a positive push,
“Lost You on the Dance Floor” has glimmering, diamond sharp synths careening
into economical but effect rhythms that favor a fervent, steady swing over
complexity. There’s such a irresistible
chorus here that this would topped charts internationally had it been released
in the 80s, though even now it should wow fans that thought the band dead or
that the current new wave scene is on life support. The layered, vocoder female vocal
accompaniment is the perfect foil to the expressive leads.
“Je Suis Stranger” changes up the mood
drastically. Roping in country-fried
guitar twang, bustling new wave rhythms, charming brass arrangements and some
of the album’s top shelf, fine wine vocal melodies, this song just oozes class
and commitment; the mark of an elder band showing the pups how it’s done. Keyboardist
Chan Poling and great bass playing give “Lovers” a churning, bottom
heavy thickness but the atmosphere remains fun-loving with funky ska-informed
guitar licks, horns and swirly outer space synths concocting a playful musical
tease. “Can’t Take You Back” culls its
rushing, perky rhythms from punk, its wistful horns from reggae/ska and its
dusty, sandstorm guitars/keys from an Ennio Morricone soundtrack. It’s a powerful piece with a killer little
guitar solo and well thought out lyrics making a relationship breakdown into a
dance-y affair.
“Unified Force” pours
on the trippy organ sound FX and hyper melodic keys onto a tune that has some
of The Clash’s harmonic punk on tap in addition to quaking bass lines and
incisive keyboards. The remaining tracks
are all sturdy constructions of the band’s best qualities with only sublime
ballad “Butterfly” coming off as a bit out of place. Even with that minor nitpick there’s not too
many complaints you can levy against Hey
Muse! These genre innovators have
come back with a fantastic record after a 4/5 year break
No comments:
Post a Comment