Maybe the reason why the new album is entitled Transparent Things is because after one listen, I immediately discerned that Fujiya & Miyagi listened to quite a bit of Hot Chip, Junior Boys, and other popular-of-late chilled contemporaries while jamming out ideas for this newest full-length. If they didn't, well, it sounds great anyhow.Most songs on this understated release carry subdued and often whispered vocals, which, aligned with funky, rhythmic bass lines, have led me to make the above comparisons. This being said, the majority of the album's tracks are minimal compared to the amount of layers and instruments incorporated by their peers, a trait best exemplified on leading track "Ankle Injuries" and "Conductor 71." On the other hand, the aforementioned funk does eventually surface in the second half, most easily identified on "In One Ear & Out The Other." Hopefully the irony is purposeful as the groove tends to stick in your head. There is a similarly clear intent in all of the album's instrumentation and knob-twiddling, leaving listeners with a carefully constructed effort that should be considered among the best of its kind thus far in '07.
Fujiya & Miyagi - Ankle Injuries
Fujiya & Miyagi - Conductor 71
Speaking of Hot Chip:
Amy Winehouse - Rehab (Hot Chip Remix)
- Brad
No comments:
Post a Comment