This hazy, electronic number is fairly representative of the album’s mood, but it is punctuated by the occasional spasm from a clap drum that hangs there, awkward as a fart in church and so many drum fills that you would swear you were listening to the chorus of “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins on repeat. Otherwise, it’s a great song.
This hazy, electronic number is fairly representative of the album’s mood, but it is punctuated by the occasional spasm from a clap drum that hangs there, awkward as a fart in church and so many drum fills that you would swear you were listening to the chorus of “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins on repeat. Otherwise, it’s a great song.
Beast Rest Forth Mouth was a triumph for me: that 2009 album left a trail of gaping jaws in its wake, wowing even the most hardened ‘hipster’ critics. (And it is difficult to impress people who make an occupation from being resolutely underwhelmed by music.)
So, what about the follow up, I Love You, It’s Cool ? This album is a good illustration of the current shape of US electro. But, compared to Bear In Heaven’s earlier material, it also feels a bit like a rebound partner – you know, a nice enough gal/guy, but … let’s face it, they are never going to set your world on fire. It would be easy enough to damn them (and this album) with faint praise: “I mean, he/she/it is nice, interesting, means well, has good intentions”, but let’s face it – there’s no Ultimate Satisfaction to be had here.
That is the problem with I Love You, It’s Cool: where ARE the tracks, of which Ultimate Satisfaction is one, that carry the seemingly insatiable rhythmic drive, that tingling sense of excitement, those ecstatic, expansive choruses that defined the bands last album?
That said, the sound on the latest release is not unrecognisable, the same huge soundscapes are still there, and the opening track, Idle Heart, shows Bear In Heaven still have that magic touch that can leave you trembling with antic…ipation. Except, this time they are created with an aggressive menagerie of various synth tones (see World of Freak Out) and treated with so much reverb that every sound feels tragically indistinct, like you were listening to the album with your head inside a goldfish bowl.
Take Cool Light, for instance. This hazy, electronic number is fairly representative of the album’s mood, but it is punctuated by the occasional spasm from a clap drum that hangs there, awkward as a fart in church and so many drum fills that you would swear you were listening to the chorus of “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins on repeat. Otherwise, it’s a great song.
I’m sorry guys, I can see what you were going for, but it just isn’t working for me. You clearly put everything into this album, you really tried, but things just aren’t like they used to be.