undonesweater93
04/05/09, 01:03 PM
Late of the Pier - Fantasy Black Channel
Record Label: Parlophone Records
Release Date: August 11, 2008 (UK); January 13, 2009 (US)
Who?
The debut album from Indie-Electro band Late of the Pier. Formed in 2001, the band has gained success on London’s under-18 club and all-ages scene. Late of the Pier hail from Castle Donnington U.K., the home of metal. The band, whose members are mostly in their early twenties, released their debut Fantasy Black Channel on Parlophone.
How is it?
Fantasy Black Channel is, at the very least, interesting. The 12-track disc plays out like a medley of '80s-era New Wave, filled with captivating melodies, pulsing keyboards and tons of hipster rave moments. Some may make the case that nu-rave is dead, but Late of the Pier make a convincing argument to the contrary.
The true strength comes from the album’s incredible variety. One song sounds nothing like the next, and even parts of the same song sound nothing alike. You could guess this is what a musical interpretation of Attention Deficit Disorder would sound something like. A good example of this is “Focker,” which starts out as an energetic, keyboard-driven track about relationship apathy, but in the last 30 seconds, builds into a full grown rave anthem. And Late of the Pier never really abandons their sound throughout all these musical endeavors, so everything ends up satisfactory.
Late of the Pier are fairly good are channeling their influences without downright copying them. They channel Gary Numan ("Space and the Woods"), MGMT ("The Bears are Coming") and various 80’s new-wave bands ("Heartbeat"), while still implementing their own style on these songs. On others, the UK band sounds like not much else ("Random Firl"). Most of the album has enough '80s nostalgia to make your mom recall that one time she met that guy at the Duran Duran concert (and unfortunately, he never called) while still keeping hold of enough modern flair to not be just a nostalgic band, from the half-time, glam instrumental “Hot Tent Blues” to the Queens of the Stone Age-electro “Broken”.
Overall, the album brings a very fresh perspective to electro music. Most of the lyrics, while being about not wanting to integrate into society, bring an interesting world-view. They could be better, but they’re not particularly bad. While the album seems to be just a distraction from the neon-pop garbage invading the airwaves nowadays, listen closer; there’s definitely some artistic value underneath the shiny synthesizers and the fun rave moments.
shiny things; bunnies; strobe lights; MGMT; Klaxons; Gary Numan; '80s new wave
myspace.com/lateofthepier (http://www.myspace.com/lateofthepier)
Record Label: Parlophone Records
Release Date: August 11, 2008 (UK); January 13, 2009 (US)
Who?
The debut album from Indie-Electro band Late of the Pier. Formed in 2001, the band has gained success on London’s under-18 club and all-ages scene. Late of the Pier hail from Castle Donnington U.K., the home of metal. The band, whose members are mostly in their early twenties, released their debut Fantasy Black Channel on Parlophone.
How is it?
Fantasy Black Channel is, at the very least, interesting. The 12-track disc plays out like a medley of '80s-era New Wave, filled with captivating melodies, pulsing keyboards and tons of hipster rave moments. Some may make the case that nu-rave is dead, but Late of the Pier make a convincing argument to the contrary.
The true strength comes from the album’s incredible variety. One song sounds nothing like the next, and even parts of the same song sound nothing alike. You could guess this is what a musical interpretation of Attention Deficit Disorder would sound something like. A good example of this is “Focker,” which starts out as an energetic, keyboard-driven track about relationship apathy, but in the last 30 seconds, builds into a full grown rave anthem. And Late of the Pier never really abandons their sound throughout all these musical endeavors, so everything ends up satisfactory.
Late of the Pier are fairly good are channeling their influences without downright copying them. They channel Gary Numan ("Space and the Woods"), MGMT ("The Bears are Coming") and various 80’s new-wave bands ("Heartbeat"), while still implementing their own style on these songs. On others, the UK band sounds like not much else ("Random Firl"). Most of the album has enough '80s nostalgia to make your mom recall that one time she met that guy at the Duran Duran concert (and unfortunately, he never called) while still keeping hold of enough modern flair to not be just a nostalgic band, from the half-time, glam instrumental “Hot Tent Blues” to the Queens of the Stone Age-electro “Broken”.
Overall, the album brings a very fresh perspective to electro music. Most of the lyrics, while being about not wanting to integrate into society, bring an interesting world-view. They could be better, but they’re not particularly bad. While the album seems to be just a distraction from the neon-pop garbage invading the airwaves nowadays, listen closer; there’s definitely some artistic value underneath the shiny synthesizers and the fun rave moments.
shiny things; bunnies; strobe lights; MGMT; Klaxons; Gary Numan; '80s new wave
myspace.com/lateofthepier (http://www.myspace.com/lateofthepier)