Now that the hilarious furore of the nonre (non-genre) new-rave has died down, perhaps we can get on with listening to some proper arse-wiggling dance music that is strong enough to stand up for itself without being propped up by some lazy-arsed hack’s attempts at pigeon holing (it’s electronic; it’s got guitars; it’s dancey; it’s heavy – nooooo, must-create-neat-space-for-sound…). Hot Chip have made a good ambisexual start, CSS are ruding it up, but if you want pure carnival sexiness… go to St Albans. You don’t hear that every day of the week.
It could have been a very different story though. School buds Macfarlane (vox, synths, bass), Gibson (guitar – what else) and Savidge (drums) started out playing post-hardcore Fugazi inspired music with lots of math guitar and no vocals. Hardly Mardi Gras, but then they discovered the power of pop and lo and behold… Friendly Fires’ eponymous album.
The complexity and tricksiness is still there for all those who want it though, only it’s been funked up and grooved over: the synth and bass combo of ‘In The Hospital’ is the dirtiest funk this side of Parliament and hooky as you like, with just the slightest hint of Michael Jackson circa ‘Off The Wall’; ‘Jump In The Pool’ may pack the breathiest synths this side of 10cc but beneath it all is the throbbing pulse of a Brazilian street party. Essentially, it never gets overwhelmingly artsy – the closest it gets to indulgent is on ‘Skeleton Boy’ but even at this one’s progish heart lies Macfarlane et al’s secret weapon.
Candy Staton, or specifically the Source featuring Candy Staton. This is Friendly Fires’ ‘Shazam!’ Like a brazen idol, that looping, descending adagio rears up above the beat, vocals and riff and names the whole lot as its own. Most evident on ‘On Board’ and the aforementioned ‘Skeleton Boy,’ they don’t skirt around it, avoid it or deny it. It’s loud and proud, and from thereon disco ensues.
‘Strobe’ with all its Euro-synths and twinkle beat is veritably sequined, despite its backtracked guitars; ‘Lovesick’ slides and sleazes, revelling in its failed relationship over groovy bass, guitar and bongos; ‘Photo Booth’ dirties up a perfectly innocent woodblock with slap-pluck bass and a constant beat full of Studio 54 promise. The shaking of booty is unavoidable, though your mind screams “this is so basic – do not give into its primal urges.” But your mind is no longer listening, because its already taken too much of a battering from ‘Paris’ and ‘White Diamonds.’
‘Paris,’ that NME Single of the Week thing may smack of Calvin Harris in delivery, but he never had such epic ambitions. The chorus opens up like a starshell, a sweet duet on a balcony overlooking a Son Et Lumiere over the Seine. It’s a promise of near future hedonism (“I’ll find you that French boy/you’ll find me that French girl”) masquerading as romance. It’s an honest fantasy and it never lets up; unrelentingly vivacious. ‘White Diamonds’ on the other hand is pure stomp, 70’s style. Part Diana Ross, part LCD Soundsystem, part Scissor Sisters, the falsetto soars as Savidge pounds the drums… then, just when you think you’ve got the measure, Gibson throws in a post-rock middle eight over the disco. Nuts, but inspired. And then there’s the cowbell… did I mention the cowbell?
Taking Christopher Walken to heart, if there was anymore cowbell in this album, it would be all cowbell… or bongo… or woodblock. The percussion from Savidge is an inspired moveable feast, an inclusive carnival of pick up and plays. It gives it an unmistakably improvised feel while retaining the professional tightness required to achieve such flexibility. Despite that, it never overwhelms. There is balance, harmony, and this is what really lifts this album head and shoulders above its contemporaries.
LCD Soundsystem has always sounded a bit patchy to me; CSS have a brace of decent songs; Hot Chip can get a bit experimental. Friendly Fires remain true to the dance, maintain the form, comes out dripping with sweat and beaming like a loony; it has no pretentions to deny or confess. Stick this in your ears and prepare to have a good time without guilt or shame; it’s what it’s there for.
Popularity: 12% [?]
