Artist: Wolf Gang
Title: Suego Faults
Label: Atlantic
Genre: Indie
Bitrate: 251kbit av.
Time: 00:38:49
Size: 73.92 mb
Rip Date: 2011-07-27
Str Date: 2011-07-25
01. Lions In Cages 4:26
02. Something Unusual 3:22
03. Stay And Defend 3:21
04. Suego Faults 2:59
05. The King And All Of His Men 4:03
06. Back To Back 4:15
07. Midnight Dancers 4:09
08. Dancing With The Devil 3:43
09. Where Are You Now 3:16
10. Planets 5:15
Release Notes:
Utopia. You can overthink it, you know. I mean, sure, draw out your
nice little societal schematics, neatly allocate your resources and
decide what kind of sex everyone gets to have if you must, but as far
as weÆre concerned all you need for a perfect world is a skinny guy
with a sharp suit and even sharper songs. Named after an imaginary
never-never land envisioned in a dream, the shiny little microcosm that
is Londoner Max McElligottÆs debut has been a long time in the
nurturing and crafting, and it shows. Smoother, richer and more
substantial than the skittish, David-Byrne-on-a-hot-tin-roof peacock
pop of 2009 single æPieces Of YouÆ, everything here is beautifully
made, lightweight and durable. Sure, in places you can see the grain of
the building materials, but seriously, check out the dovetails on this
baby.
Anyway, quit yer bitchinÆ û if it werenÆt for the odd plank of Byrne
and some hefty joists of Bowie, half the houses on Indie Avenue would
never get built, and not many people can hammer beautiful little
follies like these out of them. Opener æLions In CagesÆ sets the tone,
a flamboyantly chiselled edifice built from slabs of MGMT-ish
electro-pop resting on pillars of Killers-style indie rockÆnÆroll. ôThe
city joins us with hands of grace/Hands free, there are no
constraintsö, promises McElligott, as the coltish, bone-rattling rocket
of the chorus takes off.
Effortlessness is the name of the game, and from there on solid little
pop gems are tossed off like theyÆre nothing, from the sweeping,
romantic vista of æSomething UnusualÆ, McElligott pleading ôWhy wonÆt
you lay down your little heart for me?/WeÆd be something out of this
world, never seen beforeö, to the strutting, Talking Heads romp of
æStay And DefendÆ with its vibrant belter of a chorus. æThe King And
All Of His MenÆ is a high-cheekboned glammy stomp that knows ridicule
is nothing to be scared of, duelling with Adam Ant on high table, while
the lush, loose-hipped æBack To BackÆ changes pace with a moody,
heartbroken depth and a seductive three-note bass line.
æMidnight DancersÆ perhaps has too much fun dressing up in BowieÆs
æHunky DoryÆ vibes, but its gentle, organ-tickled prettiness is lovable
nonetheless, McElligott imagining sepia-tinted love tableaux: ôHere we
go again on the cobbled streets of Paris/WeÆll go dancing round the
square/And everyone will stop and stare at the lovers of the nightö. As
well as a harum-scarum momentum, the whole album, sonically midwived by
Mercury Rev and Flaming Lips producer Dave Fridmann, has a seductive
sense of dashing romance, leaping from cloud to cloud towards some
distant glittering prize with lapels flying. The spacious title track
takes a piano for a weightless walk across a sunset of reverb as
McElligott sagely notes, ôItÆs hard to draw the line when you canÆt see
the safety netö.
æPlanetsÆ closes things in grand, psychic space-odyssey fashion through
clouds of reverb and chorused vocal, with the sad acknowledgement:
ôSuego Faults is just a dream that IÆm waking up from nowö. Ah, our
little Fantasia is all over, and we must relucatantly return to the
grim reality of Monday mornings and new Kooks albums, but it was
certainly some trip. And it will be interesting to see where a talent
like Wolf GangÆs travels to next.