MORE THAN THE MUSIC POST: Introducing Foreign Office

Foreign Office are a London based four-piece who originally hail from Great Yarmouth. The group have self-released a number of EPs over the past 18 months or so, with a new extended play dubbed Alaska after the studio they recorded it in, set for release shortly. The group have also had a recent string of successful touring date, appearing on stage with the likes of Erasure and Carl Barat respectfully.

The group’s work blends a curious mixture of soul, funk and post-punk, to create a sound that is decidedly retro and decidedly new wave. Foreign Office’s music simply screams 1980s, both in the phrasing, timbres and style instrumentally, and in the vocal style and content, which is high reminiscent of the work of The B-52s frontman Fred Schneider. Indeed, the music Foreign Office make is like a modern day mash of The B-52s, The GoGos, Tom Tom Club and Devo, essentially being very catchy alternative rock-pop.

As you might expect, the instrumentation is fairly standard – traditional guitar, bass, drums and piano lead the way. There is however some interesting synth and percussion sounds scattered about which gives the music a slightly more modern vibe, not dissimilar to the recent work of Field Music.

Foreign Office create quirky, witty pop-rock with tightly phrased lyrics. Very upbeat, fun and certainly throwback, but enjoyable with it. The group’s new EP is set for release on their own label Quite Life on 17^th Oct 2011. Their other EPs, On Repeat and Leaving the House/Voices, are avail to download from their Bandcamp page.

See this at MTTM at: http://www.morethanthemusic.co.uk/the-next-best-thing/new-music-foreign-office/

MORE THAN THE MUSIC POST (ALBUM REVIEW): Red Hot Chili Peppers – I’m With You

I’m With You is the 10^th studio album by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, released by Warner Bros. on 26^th August 2011. It has been five long years since the group’s last release, and with the exit of guitarist John Frusciante in 2009, there were suspicions that the group may not record together again. Instead however they have emerged with this fresh offering, embellished with lavish (and expensive) details, such as a global listening party streaming the entire album, and cover art by courter of controversy Damian Hirst.

The album has received a fairly lukewarm reception critically, and to be honest, this album does fail to ignite like many previous RHCP albums. I’m With You is a relatively smooth and mellow album, and remarkably less punchy, aggressive and ballsy than previously. The music still has the classic Chili’s vibe – there is Anthony Kiedis’ instantly recognisable voice, Flea’s archetypal funk-rock bass adventures, and Chad Smith’s solid, unobtrusively fantastic drums – but that vibe is embedded somewhat in a wash of solid mediocrity.

The guitar is an obvious area for presumed disconcertion, but actually the Chili’s new guitarist Josh Klinghoffer’s style is fairly inoffensive. That’s not to say he makes a huge impression on the music either, his style just politely fits the general sound of the RHCP, and of this album, with a few nice licks and some interesting heavier work from time to time.

For me though the departure of Frusciante is a greater loss on the beautiful vocal harmonies that the Chili’s have created in their more recent albums. John’s falsetto backing vocals combined with Keidis’ lead created some of the most utterly beautiful, goosebump-inducing harmonies, and in this album have now disappeared. They do attempt a resurface on I’m With You, but they are mostly supplied by overlaid female backing, and just do not feel as organic and heartfelt as when it was created directly by the band’s own vocal chords.

There are some plus points however; as expected the album has been fanatically produced by Rick Rubin, and I’m With You features a sound that is slick, tight and clear yet enveloping. This is without doubt the best produced album I’ve heard all year, and possibly has the best literal sound quality of all the RHCP’s albums. There are some nice moments in the music too – Annie Wants a Baby has some pleasant, fairly ingenious guitar parts, and Monarchy of Roses is a catchy upbeat track.

Unfortunately however, the best tracks on I’m With You do not even reach the standards of common album tracks from the likes of By The Way and Californication. Also, considering the theme of the album is “Life and Death”, I’m With You does not have any of the raw pain and potency of all their previous albums. Simply and emotionally put – slow tracks do not make the heart bleed, and faster tracks do not excite the feet like they used to.

See this at MTTM at: http://www.morethanthemusic.co.uk/album-reviews/red-hot-chili-peppers-%E2%80%93-i%E2%80%99m-with-you/

HERE COMES EVERYONE: Band of the Week #3 - Volkova Sisters

The Volkova Sisters are a super hip new band combining elements of jazz, blues, funk shoe-gaze and American folk to create a kind of bizarre yet pleasant type of electronic ambient noise-pop. Hailing from Budapest, these guys are a key part of the burgeoning Hungarian DIY scene (which you of course knew about months ago), and have drawn their band name from king of cyber-punk William Gibson’ book Pattern Recognition.

The Volkova Sister’s claim to be highly influenced by 80s’ dark wave band such as My Bloody Valentine and Cocteau Twins, but in reality their music is much more complex and varied than these sources might suggest. Whilst the group’s work does retain elements of a more dark, disconcerting atmosphere, the band also have solid beats within their work, which often feature some quirky, pop-like splashes. This is not pop music though; there is a solid DIY vibe that permeates through their work, making it sound almost purposefully budget and authentic. The timbres and techniques of both voice and instrument are also rather twisted; with tracks typically featuring twisted effects and retro-futuristic synths.

The Volkova Sisters have an EP, Venus Robot, due for release on 24^th Oct 2011, with an EP launch party in London at The Drop on the 11^th September. These guys also have a fantastic website – which you really should check out:

See this at HCE at: http://www.herecomeseveryone.org/_blog/journal.php?id=301

MORE THAN THE MUSIC POST: Introducing M+E

M+E are a new electro-pop duo, recently signed to Monotreme Records. The duo consists of 19 year old Michele Ducci and 22 year old Alessandro Deli Angioli, hence the name M+E – Michele + Alessandro. This pair of Italians are starting to make big waves on the independent scene, and are scheduled to release their debut album things.yes on 7^th November 2011.

M+E have an interesting approach to their music. Firstly, although this group is a duo, they should be really thought of more as two musicians co-existing and creating together, rather than directly collaborating directly. Additionally, as well a having a literally homemade aesthetic (they recorded the entirety of their forthcoming album under a mansard roof), they have rather unusual lyrics, which are often inaudible or sound like nonsense. This concept is apparently due to the group’s Italian nationality, and of typically listening to English-language pop music with the vocals occurring simply as an instrument, instead of as a force for the track’s narrative. This technique is perhaps a little unorthodox, but it does work, and the results are quite pleasant and do not detract from the absolute beauty of M+E’s music.

Their current lead track Liko Leme Lisa has a number of interesting sounds and samples layered into a collage, creating a pretty, understated, happy, and pleasantly offbeat vibe. There are lots of pretty little ditties, interlaced with plucked violins, mellow, jazzy brass licks and on-trend dream-pop synth concoctions that work well together, creating a developed, happy and good-natured sonic experience.

M+E create music that is pretty, quirky, friendly and clever – it really feels like it is pushing boundaries, creating something new and exciting, yet it is charming enough to be accessible. There are a lot of samples in their work, but this music is not simply pluderphonics – it is dream-pop, IDM and electro-pop as well. M+E are making wonderful new music, and are a very interesting new group.

See this at MTTM at: http://www.morethanthemusic.co.uk/the-next-best-thing/introducing-me/