Releasing ‘II’, their only album to date in 2009, the reputation of DESIRE was reinforced when one of its tracks ‘Under Your Spell’ was included on the influential soundtrack to the film ‘Drive’ starring Ryan Gosling.
Fronted by the vivacious French Canadian Megan Louise, DESIRE also feature Johnny Jewel and Nat Walker of CHROMATICS.
Jewel is also the founder of the highly regarded independent record label Italians Do It Better and after a period looking after royalty accounting, Megan Louise became company president.
A second DESIRE long player has been eagerly awaited for some time now and in 2020, a series of singles including ‘Boy’ and ‘Liquid Dreams’ were released as teasers although as with CHROMATICS ‘Dear Tommy’, it did not actually materialise.
But there were several excellent tracks released among these trailers. There was the deviantly amorous ‘Black Latex’ which was a spoken word art piece in French and English inspired by Andy Warhol, while the brilliantly naive escapist electronic disco of ‘Escape’ imagined BANANARAMA fronting NEW ORDER.
Talking of NEW ORDER, when DESIRE embarked on the ‘Double Exposure’ world tour with CHROMATICS and other Italians Do It Better label mates in 2019, they performed a faithful note-for-note cover of ‘Bizarre Love Triangle’. On stage, Megan Louise literally got into the spirit of the song’s title and passionately kissed her live keyboardist Aja of IDIB act HEAVEN in full-view of her beau Johnny Jewel. But for the new DESIRE single ‘Zeros’, Megan Louise has found a new keyboard partner-in-crime in Korean-born model Soo Joo Park.
A gorgeously dreamy electronic dance track produced and mixed by Johnny Jewel, the seductive opening line “Hey Mr Midnight, I’ve been waiting for you” signals the intent and its sunset noir cinematics are captured in the accompanying video shot in the desert of Palm Springs. Directed by Kirill Nong, it sees Megan Louise and Soo Joo Park burying their past. Reflecting the lockdown fatigue many are feeling, there is resignation that things are “Adding Up To Zero Every Single Day”.
Of ‘Zeros’, Megan Louise said: “As the calendar pages fly by, we are all reaching for a new normal on what sometimes feels like an endless loop. The cyclical music echoes flashback sequences of a recurring dream, chanting ‘Falling like a feather… Never touch the floor’. We sampled the incessant strikes of a grandfather clock, stopwatches and digital alarm clocks to keep the time. From sunrise to sunset, every single day is adding up…”
‘Zeros’ is released by Italians Do It Better as a digital single available on the usual platforms
Delayed it may have been but the wait is well worth it. With the release of ‘The Future Bites’, his sixth solo album in just over a decade, Steven Wilson will hopefully and finally put to rest the calls to reform the dodo dead PORCUPINE TREE. Not that I wouldn’t be front of the queue for such a reunion, I would… but the confines of that band project wouldn’t have furnished us with a release as compact, assured and ‘muscular’ as TFB.
Focused on the modern twin malaise of consumerism and identity, this album clocking in at around 41 minutes is no prog rock behemoth. In keeping with the overall concept, premiere of ‘Personal Shopper’ aside, every track does what it says on the tin and gets out of your face almost as quickly as it arrives.
Opening with the just over a minute long ‘Unself’ and segueing into complimentary cut ‘Self’, this will immediately confound expectations, and not just with the briefness of running time. A distant acoustic guitar accompanies a typically melancholy Wilson vocal which reminds us “all love is self…”
‘Self’ concentrates on one of the album’s key themes, the impact of influencers and the like via social media. At a time when the new norm are the twins of self-delusion and the self-absorption, this track asks what is left when all there is the ‘Self’? The answer is very little of value.
‘King Ghost’ is one of the tracks released as a single that has caused apoplexy in certain areas of the prog rock fan fraternity. A wonderful piece of modern electronica that pivots around a marvellous vocal performance from Wilson, the comments that accompanied the release at the tail end of last year actually play into another of the TFB’s key themes, consumerism and the entitlement that comes with that in the modern age. This is the standout track on the album, beautifully produced and played.
’12 Things I Forgot’ could easily have come off of the recent album of BLACKFIELD, one of Wilson’s numerous side projects. At first, it appears to be a simple pop song that wouldn’t be out of place over the end titles of a rom-com but the lyric is way more biting and, to this listener, seems to answer some of the critics that slated the album months before it was released.
Just as you think you have a handle on the album a curve ball arrives with ‘Eminent Sleaze’. This is the kind of thing 10CC would have put out back in the day, tongue-in-cheek with loads of knowing nods to other musical genres. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who listens to Wilson and longtime collaborator Tim Bowness’ wonderful ‘Album Years’ podcast. The breadth of their musical knowledge and influences are wide and this draws on many of those, as does the whole album.
‘Man Of The People’ is a straightforward track that has another excellent vocal performance from Wilson underpinning a mostly electronic backing. This highlights the overall lightness of production in the album; it has a wonderfully wide soundstage that really does reward repeat listening on headphones. Wilson and production partner David Kosten should be commended on refusing to go down the everything louder than everything else route, which worked for MOTÖRHEAD but not many other artists.
The album’s debut single ‘Personal Shopper’ caused another shockwave through the prog world… where are the guitar solos? The ‘real’ drumming? This is idiotic, though when you work with someone like Craig Blundell who is a human drum machine; it’s easy to see how they all got confused!
And is that Elton John?!?! Some of the naysayers are still wiping the tears away with the sleeve of their ‘Selling England By The Pound’ tour T-shirts. Having well-known shopaholic Elton read a shopping list is another nod to the humour that permeates this release. The biggest joke is on those that want another album full of ‘Raider II’s… this is the longest cut on the album.
‘Follower’ delivers the drums and guitars demanded by traditionalists, but it’s more garage punk than grandiose prog. There is even a guitar solo (although it’s not ‘Regret No9’) and some 70s style arrangement in the bridge, but think SPARKS rather than CAMEL. And with ‘Count of Unease’, we reach the end of what in places is a breathless 41 minutes. This has more than a passing nod to the likes of later TALK TALK and the Tim Bowness albums, with brass tones and a vocal that fades off as it arrived in ‘Unself’, in a wash of reverb and melancholy.
The usual Wilson special edition boxset (yes, the irony isn’t lost, no need to over egg it!) adds additional tracks including a wonderful cover of LONELY ROBOT’s ‘In Floral Green’ which originally appeared on the B Side of ‘Eminent Sleaze’. This repays LONELY ROBOT main man John Mitchell’s cover of PORCUPINE TREE’s ‘The Nostalgia Factory’… these should all be looked upon as extras, not as additions to the main album if that makes sense. Most listeners will only consume the core product…
In addition, mention should be made of ‘The Future Bites’ Sessions released on YouTube which has seen Wilson in the studio performing tracks from the album, a couple of earlier songs from his career and a quite wonderful cover of Taylor Swift’s ‘The Last Great American Dynasty’. A truly eclectic artist, it blurs the lines and keeps ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK’s own Chi Ming Lai happy at the same time! ?
Steven Wilson has once again with ‘The Future Bites’, demonstrated why he is held in such high regard. An artist that has the bottle to plough his own furrow and do his own thing should be commended, especially when it is as well realised as ‘The Future Bites’.
In this instance an example of self-belief we can all get behind. An album that, even this early in 2021, will be vying for top spot in many people’s end of the year lists come December.
‘The Future Bites’ is released by SW Records / Caroline Records in limited deluxe boxset, CD, red or black vinyl LP, cassette, Blu-ray and digital formats, available from https://store.thefuturebites.com/
2021 UK tour dates include:
Cardiff St David’s Hall (8th September), Sheffield City Hall (9th September), Manchester O2 Apollo (11th September), Glasgow Concert Hall (12th September), Birmingham Symphony Hall (13th September), Portsmouth Guildhall (15th September) London Hammersmith Apollo (16th September), Nottingham Royal Concert Hall (17th September)
‘Mercer’ is the debut single by new Leeds based duo DEVOIR.
Behind DEVOIR are Imogen Holmes and Jacob Marston; the latter is the drummer with black-clad alternative rock band DEAD NAKED HIPPIES although Marston once confessed “I grew up with New Romantic music dominating the stereo”. Meanwhile Holmes is the talented young lady behind IMI who opened for REIN’s London show in 2019 and released the acclaimed EP ‘Lines’. A product of lockdown, although ‘Mercer’ is entirely electronic, it differs slightly from the music from IMI in its four-to-the-floor construction.
So imagine GOLDFRAPP at an Alpine rave in the Hornlihutte basecamp next to The Matterhorn. As the cinematic techno builds, the magnificent voice that graced IMI tracks such as ‘Margins’, ‘The Fence’ and ‘I Feel Alright’ soars and shines, expressing itself at the extremes of alluring spoken word and piercing high soprano.
‘Mercer’ is perhaps the first truly great track of 2021 and accompanying it in monochrome, the simple but highly effective fast motion video sees the pair hard at work in their home studio as the world whizzes by…
“It’s a slight departure from IMI with a lot of similar threads, but hopefully a positive new direction” Imogen Holmes told ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK of the concept behind DEVOIR.
The restrictions on many levels proved to be inspiring; “We were pretty limited in terms of gear when we first started working on this project, so we decided to embrace the simplicity and the entire song ended up being informed by the initial bass line and kick drum” she added, “We also took pretty drastic inspiration from the books we were reading at the time, which ended up being a really refreshing way of approaching writing”.
‘Mercer’ is available as a digital single via the usual platforms
With an album named after a lyric from ROXY MUSIC’s ‘True To Life’ off ‘Avalon’ and describing her music as “New Wave. New Romantic. Art Rock. Escapism.”, Suffolk based Sophie Mahon undoubtedly wishes she was in another time, another place.
Before DEPECHE MODE, SOFT CELL and the programmable technology revolution, bands who used synths like VISAGE, ULTRAVOX, JAPAN, SIMPLE MINDS and DURAN DURAN had conventional rhythm sections and it was this juxtaposition of electronics with inventive approaches to more rockist forms that created an accessible retro-futuristic sound which dominated mainstream music between 1979-82.
As with the clientele at The Blitz Club, stylish movie stars Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Sean Connery and Roger Moore are also a key influence for Mahon. So it’s unsurprising that ‘Xenon Nights’ opener ‘Black Tie’ is a winner; a sophisticated slice of art pop, it glistens with synths alongside conventional backing while Mahon showcases her fine contralto voice with the occasional Ferry-ism to outline her manifesto.
No doubt borrowing the title from the DURAN DURAN instrumental which was itself influenced by the William Blake poem, ‘Tiger Tiger’ uses the first “burning bright” line from that very prose and parties like it’s 1972; with its bursts of piano and sax, it could be subtitled ‘2RM’.
Despite a gloriously swooping synth in the intro, ‘Poster Boy Smile’ nods more towards the new wave power pop like BLONDIE and TALKING HEADS. Perhaps paying tribute to ‘The Man Who Fell To Earth’, the mid-paced funk of ‘Mr Newton’ takes a diversion and is centred around an almost jazzy offbeat bass and drum jam.
Meanwhile, ‘Blue Eyes’ is punctuated by a big treated snare; a ‘Re-Make/Re-Model’ for today, it was inspired by Mahon’s unrequited childhood crush on a Simon Le Bon lookalike! But ‘The Beautiful & The Damned’ is rockier with dominant guitar and organ stabs; it actually comes over like TEXAS if the Glaswegians had been regulars at The Blitz Club.
Moving from dusk till dawn, a ballad in the shape of ‘Carousel’ recalls Roxy’s ‘A Really Good Time’ while over a shimmering bed of synths, the sparse ‘Night Circus’ offers greater air time for Mahon’s accomplished voice as the song itself moves away from the Roxy template towards the rosy prairie of TEXAS, but without the Ry Cooder aesthetics and using electronic squelches instead.
This latter phase of the ‘Xenon Nights’ sees Mahon in more like a conventional singer-songwriter territory and despite the use of synths, ‘Angel Of Stone’ does come over like a TEXAS album track in their ‘Rick’s Road’ phase, while the album closer ‘Splendid Isolation’ could be mistaken for Tanita Tikaram or Jacqui Abbott.
Sophie Mahon takes a flesh and blood approach to her influences and while some veteran fans of the New Romantic era may only find the first handful of tracks on ‘Xenon Nights’ to their liking, what cannot be denied is that she has a musical talent that has potential to shine outside of any niche.
Chinese band STOLEN had been due to open for NEW ORDER in Spring 2020 in Japan and celebrate their 10th anniversary with a national tour. But with the coronavirus crisis, these live dates were put on hold as the world went into lockdown.
After the restrictions were lifted in their home city of Chengdu in May 2020, STOLEN performed the first post-lockdown live internet gig to over 650,000 viewers across the world. With China being able control their pandemic and its citizens compliant with the ongoing but more relaxed restrictions, STOLEN were able to embark on their tour in November 2020 to a rapturous response.
Having already supported NEW ORDER on their six date European tour in Autumn 2019, STOLEN continue to solidify their position as the leader of a new generation of Chinese artists which also includes FIFI RONG, QUIETER THAN SPIDERS and Re-TROS.
Following the release of their excellent breakthrough album ‘Fragment’ on MFS in Autumn 2018, produced by Mark Reeder and his regular collaborator Micha Adam, the Berlin based studio partnership have given the Sinomatic techno-rock sextet a subtle makeover with a Sinful Remix of ‘The Loop Sin’.
With a video using fan-recorded footage from various gigs including the 2019 NEW ORDER tour where it was the set closer, the buzzy extended jam of ‘The Loop Sin’ is a classic Reeder production full of heavy propulsive grit and live textural enhancements.
But the new denser version applies an extra bounce on the bass while additional synthetic strings and rhythmic elements boost the climatic instrumental layers over eight minutes, showcasing STOLEN’s brand of Sinomatic technorock.
The parent ‘Fragment’ album, from which ‘The Loop Sin’ was originally homed, is a well-thought out, well-crafted record with plenty of adventure, space and mystery within its multi-genre cocoon.
It all illustrates why Mark Reeder considers Liang Yi, Duan Xuan, Fangde, Yuan Yu Feng, Wu Jun Yang and graphix director Formol to be one of the bands he has been most excited about since NEW ORDER.
Meanwhile continuing his artistic kinship with NEW ORDER, there will be a Mark Reeder remix of their most recent single ‘Be A Rebel’ released in Spring 2021 via Mute Artists.
The Sinful Remix of ‘The Loop Sin’ is available via the usual digital platforms
The original version of The Loop Sin is taken from the album ‘Fragment’ released by MFS as a double vinyl LP, available from https://mfsberlin.com/
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, his sixth solo album in just over a decade, 
is perhaps the first truly great track of 2021 and accompanying it in monochrome, the simple but highly effective fast motion video sees the pair hard at work in their home studio as the world whizzes by…
is available via the usual digital platforms
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