REVIEW
Embrace Embrace
30 years is a long lifetime for a band. It means that Embrace, founded in 1990, have seen just about each new evolution in the music industry first hand. Hell, they can even boast Coldplay as a support band when Chris Martin et al were just starting up. Surfing on the waves of new musical trends, Embrace have succeeded in surprising their fans with each new wave of a release, bending and mixing genres along the way that immediately lifts their status from confident surfers to mysterious alchemists. Guitars, pianos and electro; the combination of these three distinct timbres might seem a dangerous experiment, but Embrace have succeeded in creating a giant, glittering pot of gold out of these ingredients. Te lid of their pot, ‘Protection’, kicks in the door with a thundering beat, as if this is the electricity the band needs to do their experiment. Te energy that flows out of this lightning crash continues to keep up the good spirit throughout the rest of the album. Tracks such as ‘Follow you Home’ and ‘A Tief On My Island’ contain uncountable amounts of instruments, each of them performing their precise task and contributing to a fantastic symphony. Musical alchemy is one of the best things there is. 30 years to the good, you might forgive them for using old-fashioned formulas to create their music, but surprisingly enough, they’ve presented a fresh, daring album with their latest one.
Tune-Yards Nikki Nack
Tis is the third album from wonderful American lady and general wizard, Merrill Garbus, aka Tune-Yards. I've loved her from the start; her playful but carefully put together songs are so unusual and shine so brightly amongst so much of the dross handed to us these days. Her first two albums were put together solely on her own, each sound looped over others to create the mish-mash of many noises and moments that is her own style of music. Her new album, ‘Nikki Nack’, was produced by John Hill and Malay, big time guys who work with Rhianna and M.I.A amongst others, and it shows. It's slicker, tighter, more cohesive both within each song but also as a complete record. Te 13 tracks range from ‘Time of Dark’, one of my favourites, which reminds me of a slightly wilder, upbeat Bat for Lashes number, to ‘Rocking Chair’, on which an old fashioned fiddle accompanies Merrill's loud folk singing, reminiscing about her childhood. ‘Water Fountain’ is a Milkshake by Kelis-style catchy track, whereas ‘Look Around’ is a sensual ballad in a semi-jazz style. I’m very happy to hear her spirit and voice have not changed and that she has not succumbed to a more mainstream style. It's still very much her work; a massive mix up of jazzy, hip hop, indie, folk, African-influenced music that you just have to listen to, to believe. Plus, she looks wicked-cool and I wish she was my friend.
Little Dragon Nabuma Rubberband
Little Dragon are a band at play. Four studio albums in, and the studio is still their playground, yet despite monkeying around with their aesthetic, they manage to still invite us into the sandbox with them. What keeps it consistent is that at the very essence of every Little Dragon song, they tip a nod to timeless soul melodies. Take ‘Ritual Union’, the title track from their previous LP; do you remember the insistent beat and pitch bending synths, or is it the richly crooned melody line? ‘Nabuma Rubberband’ employs the same tactics; Yukimi Nagano’s sweet soul lilt is consistently diametrically opposed to the music, all sharp high hats and undulating electric bass. Where one twinkle toes around you, the other one takes a punch, and vice versa. Yukimi’s voice has this wonderful quality of embodying two characters; at the higher end of her range, she sings wistfully and absentmindedly, like a little girl singing to herself as she navigates figurines through a dolls’ house; at the bottom end, it’s direct and resonant – a real soul growl. Te tracks slide between the smooth funk of ‘Pretty Girls’, to the almost tribal electro of ‘Killing Me’, like Minnie Ripperton twittering over a Shy Child track. Zane Lowe’s already been rinsing ‘Paris’, full of Womack and Womack-style slick R&B, and the free download of ‘Klapp Klapp’ is, IMHO, the best track of the year so far. Little Dragon are back, so ring the bell: it’s [press] play-time.
Yarreth Plysier
Lizz Page
Emma R. Garwood
38 / May 2014/
outlineonline.co.uk
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