Swedish An House experimental Mafia debut album: approach

There is also new music from James Krivchenia and Charlie Simpson

KURT VILE — (WATCH MY MOVES)

SLACKER king Kurt Vile is back, parading his lo-fi skills on this charming new album, though it surely takes a lot of work to make music sound this effortless.

“I’m always thinking about catchy music, even though it’s fried, or sizzled, out,” Vile says, which certainly applies to the 15 tracks here.

The bracket-titled album (watch my moves) opens with cheery piano as Vile sings “going on a plane today” in nursery-rhyme fashion, before the lyrics darken with “see you on the other side, either on the Tarmac or the afterlife”.

This song references Heart Of Gold and Neil Young is an influence, while Vile sometimes speaks rather than sings the lyrics, reminiscent of Lou Reed.

This ninth studio album was largely made at his new home studio, taking Vile back to his self-produced CD-R roots, though The Violators recorded some tracks in LA. It’s packed with frazzled melodies and a summery feel that doesn’t always apply to the themes, with first single Like Exploding Stones a study of anxiety.

Wages Of Sin is a sprawling Springsteen cover — a 1982 Born In The USA outtake — that could hardly be further from The Boss’s stadium grandeur. You need plenty of confidence to appear this casual, and Vile has the skill to make it work.

8/10

(Review by Matthew George)

JAMES KRIVCHENIA — BLOOD KARAOKE

JAMES Krivchenia may be best known as the drummer of Big Thief but his solo work is a world away from that indie sound.

On Blood Karaoke, he continues his experimental excursions into rave, glitch and IDM.

The album edits together hundreds of samples from obscure YouTube videos, such as video game walkthroughs and local news clips, found through random online generators.

The result is a patchwork of sounds functioning as a musical equivalent of the Dadaists’ cut-up technique.

The music, however, is always rooted in pop, with Krivchenia’s extensive rig of synthesiser pedals contorting these sounds into fully formed songs.

Calendrical Rot is a tuneful, melancholic piece that drops suddenly into a machine funk beat reminiscent of Kraftwerk.

Pieces like The Trackless Way and Inherited Forms swing between woozy soundscapes and beatless interludes.

Then there are pieces like The Science Of Imaginary Solutions and God In Every Way, furious bangers that take the drums and bass template and warp it beyond recognition.

This is music the great electronic experimentalists, from Aphex Twin to Autechre, would be proud of.

8/10

(Review by Alex Green)

CHARLIE SIMPSON — HOPE IS A DRUG

THE varied career of the former Busted frontman and Fightstar rocker continues with a third solo album, over a decade on from his first.

It sticks to a tried and tested “former boy band” template, applying synths and vocoder to a set of intimate, emotional lyrics.

It improves as it goes on, starting with the achingly vulnerable Twice in the middle of its 10-track running order.

I See You is tender and sweet, punctuated by the first appearance of a jarring falsetto, while Anything For Love ploughs a similar furrow and is perhaps the album’s most touching moment.

Remembered Like This and Sliding Doors make for a strong finish even if the latter is a touch too saccharine —a criticism that can be levelled at much of the album.

6/10 (Review by Tom White)

SWEDISH HOUSE MAFIA — PARADISE AGAIN

AFTER dominating commercial house music throughout the 2010s, the Scandinavian trio return with a full-length debut.

Opening tracks Time and Heaven Takes You Home see the DJ supergroup — Axwell, Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso — utilise guest female vocals to great effect, creating modern dance tracks tailored for the dancefloor.

Jacob’s Note is a 60-second operatic piano piece that acts as a prelude to single Moth To A Flame, featuring vocals from Canadian R&B superstar The Weeknd that blend smoothly with the group’s swirling synths.

The record is heavier at times, evident in the sinister yet epic Mafia and club track Redlight, featuring Sting and sampling Roxanne by The Police. The trio integrate rap into their new music and, despite an underwhelming appearance from Asap Rocky, the energetic beat of Frankenstein elevates the song to a highlight of the album.

Lead single It Gets Better features driving cowbell and is built on an energetic beat reminiscent of The Chemical Brothers.

Paradise Again sees Swedish House Mafia take a more experimental approach.

It is more akin to 2012’s Greyhound and Antidote as opposed to the more commercially successful Don’t You Worry Child and Miami 2 Ibiza, and all the better for it.

8/10

(Review by Mason Oldridge)