Good pop music loves contradiction. The frisson of suspecting (or discovering) that a jaunty tune might be hiding a hint of sex, a dark secret or truth just makes it all the more special.
So the sort of handclapping, mini-skirted girl-tunes that Slow Down Tallahassee specialise in have always thrived on unsuitable men, dangerous young women and a little darkness. All are scattered over Curly Cuh, but being (despite their name) Yorkshire locals, hinting isn’t often on the agenda. There’s an eloquent frankness on matters of sex, death and despair. Acid-drop, false-eyelash-fluttering vocals sketch out portraits of souls not just wandering towards the wrong side of the tracks but lying down on them and beckoning the train on with a mixture of glee, relief and downright indifference. When they sing “I died inside the moment I set eyes on you”, you just know it’s no metaphor and that their protagonist will end up dead-eyed, empty and embracing oblivion with a near-euphoric “I am almost gone!”.
While overall the tunes aren’t quite as upbeat as on the Beautiful Light debut, it’s still a massively catchy record; I defy anyone not to end up unconsciously singing the most unsuitable things while wandering the supermarket aisles after listening. They skilfully blend the aforementioned 60s pop with late 70s/early 80s synthpomp (always a Sheffield speciality that), chugging garage bass/guitars and shoe-gazing fuzz (though on far nastier drugs).
A second terrific album then, there’s only one thing wrong with it – it’s Slow Down Tallahassee’s last.
*This article was ripped bleeding and twitching from its home at soundsxp.com