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Twin Town High (vol. 8) |
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Simian & Ladytron
Wednesday 26 February @ 11:46:28 |
 Celeste Tabora previews the rockin'est electro-arty pop dance party of the year, featuring two of the UK's finest.
The UK’s Simian is an excellent hybrid of guitar rock and electronic pop. The sound that this foursome conjures up on their new full-length, We Are Your Friends, is filled with catchy hooks and danceable beats. At the same time, Simian doesn’t sacrifice the experimentation that distinguished their previous release, Chemistry is What We Are. Although the arrangements are rather straightforward, they show just how creative the band can be while working within the strict verse-chorus-verse structure of pop.
Simian
“La Breeze,” the album opener, is a perfect introduction to the pompous debauchery that reigns on Your Friends. The pumping beat and swirling keyboards support quirky vocal harmonies in an unpolished prelude to the album’s party vibe. Simian no longer begs comparisons with The Beta Band in their folky tendencies; rather, this time they have used funk and soul to flavor their electronically tinged brand of rock. It works well for them.
“Never Be Alone” is a surefire hit, showing elements of acid dance, keyboards that point towards an early Depeche Mode, drumming that is as boisterous as Mick Jagger’s swagger, and sassy vocals that rival those of Christopher Applegren’s (The Pattern, ex-Peechees). “Skin” could be included in The Moog Cookbook, were it not for Simian’s catchy chorus. It’s a great example of how Simian can be at once listenable and highly original.
With We Are Your Friends, Simian melds genres throughout pop history: they cop the blues-inflected vibe of ’60s Britpop, the suave groove of ’70s soul, the electronic experimentation of the ’80s (ala Erasure), and the rawk energy of the ’90s. “Big Black Gun” is a good example of Simian’s musical time warp in action. The vocal styling emulates that of John Lennon in the late ’70s, but the music of ’80s glam fills out the rest of the aural space. It’s dripping with cockiness: It makes you feel like a runway model strolling down a catwalk in spandex and crimped hair.
Somewhere inside “She’s In Mind” live ghosts of George Harrison or Simon & Garfunkel’s guitar work. It’s paired with eerie, cascading vocals that hypnotize the listener. It has a very Beatles feel in its slow, churning vocals and minimalist, moody backing.
Although Simian puts on an energetic live show that makes the most of their danceable songs, don’t expect an exact replica of the beautifully produced album. If you have heard We Are Your Friends, you may have wondered how the band could possibly reproduce their tweaks and beats on stage. Well, they don’t. Instead they opt for a more conventionally rockin’ approach.
The great thing about We Are Your Friends is that Simian’s sociable energy doesn’t lose momentum over the course of its twelve tracks. From the end of one to the start of the next, each song fits together flawlessly like pieces of a puzzle. It’s exactly what an album should be: consistent from beginning to end.
Ladytron
Ladytron are currently embarking on their first tour of the US. Starting in the East and making their way out west, they’re spreading their retro-electro music from coast to coast with the too-cool posturing, tricky fashion and nonchalant attitude that characterized the glamorous ’80s.
Ladytron has risen to prominence on a wave of media hype surrounding a trendy subgenera called “electroclash.” Making this sort of lo-fi techno is simple enough: you press a couple of keys on a foul-sounding Casio you found at the Goodwill, make a couple loops and layer them. Then all you have to do is put some effects to your vocal tracks, develop a monotone way of singing, (or even get a less-than-perfect microphone that sounds like it comes with its own effects) and voila!: electroclash. There’s a new group born every day. Simple as it may be in theory though, making it sound good is quite another thing.
That’s where Ladytron comes in.
Ladytron is invariably one of the bands mentioned when someone asks, “So who is electroclash anyway?” But the band shakes their heads in dismay at being lumped in with that genre. True, when Ladytron released their debut record, 604, electronic wasn’t popularly abbreviated yet, and it sure as hell wasn’t fused with the word “clash.” And even if they weren’t the first band to be called electroclash, they definitely shaped the movement for many people who refer to the term. Not only do the band shake off the aforementioned, but the media darlings also do not understand their being penned as ones to look to as far as fashion goes. In fact, the matching outfits that they designed for shoots and stage wear were made as an anti-fashion statement. It just goes to show that if you were one of the first to start wearing your hot pink pointy-toed pump shoes again, you just might be forced to keep on wearing them.
Vintage analog synthesizers propel Ladytron’s sound. It was a mutual love for that archaic technology that brought the band together when two of the members were attending Liverpool University in 1998. The hypnotizing vocals of Mira Aroyo and Helen Marnie completed the picture. Ladytron could be grouped with any other band who use synthesizers as a primary factor in their sound, but what sets them at the top of their class is their ability to use simple song structures without having them become redundant or boring.
If you liked their debut record, you will find their most recent release Light & Magic even more delightful. Even the band admits that there is more cohesiveness to their sophomoric release than its predecessor, stating that 604 was more of a compilation of trial songs and that the tracks on Light & Magic go together better as it was made with the mindset of making an album. All the media attention the band has received, the sold out shows, and the fans’ anticipation of their third album are testimony to their success. Like a swarm of bees to honey, the buzz for this band will not be fading anytime soon.
Ladytron and Simian play this Sat., March 1 at First Avenue. They’re bringing yet another damn good band with them, too: indie-punk dance squad Street Dad will be reprazentn’ Brooklyn-style. This show should not be missed.6 p.m. $10 Adv. / $12 Door. 21+. 701 First Ave. N., Mpls. 612-338-8388.
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