|
Disco has always been among the best-produced genres in popular music. Seriously, next time you're at a sketchy 24-hour
diner and the obligatory spinning of Stayin' Alive infiltrates the
jukebox, listen for anything in the production that makes
the song sound dated. Besides the niggling image of John Travolta that
will forever be attached to the song, it really sounds like it
could've been released yesterday.
It's also what's generally thought of as
a "singles" genre. In fact, the primary holdover from disco's late '70s golden age is the Saturday
Night Fever soundtrack - naturally, an LP made up of essential
dance-floor singles.
But that notion of single-mindedness has changed of late. Since the release of
Hercules and Love Affair's excellent 2008 self-titled album, we've seen a
surprising and strong return to album-focused disco. With a greater
emphasis on emotional resonance - but without sacrificing any hip-swinging -
the scene has been brought back to life from almost pure parody.
Enter Fan Death, a Vancouver by-way-of Brooklyn collective primarily
comprised of boyfriend-girlfriend combo Dandilion Wind Opaine and Szam
Findlay, both best known for their warped, post-industrial
main-project Dandi Wind. They're not the most likely source for a full-length disco record, but it works well for them.
Fan Death's debut album, Womb of Dreams, has a lot more in
common with the aforementioned Hercules and Love Affair album
than most traditional disco influences. Like Antony Hegarty, Opaine sings with
a direct urgency, which sometimes cuts through the danceability of
the song's beat work.
Opener Constellations, although probably
initially incepted as a slow-dancing, movie-credits ballad, is
completely overpowered by her voice, even overshadowing the otherwise
incredibly meticulous string work by Marlene Ginader. Opaine can
occasionally come across as too strong for her own diva-ness; she has great pipes,
and the production clearly accentuates that, but it can occasionally
outweigh the flow of the album.
But not all of the songs on Womb Of Dreams have that problem. The album becomes more traditionalist and
(un-coincidentally) more fun-loving around its middle. Here, songs range from the fuck-you, boom-bapping When The
Money's Right to the spacey Italo disco of The Best Night of my Life.
This is where the album most closely resembles fellow 2010 disco opus,
!!!'s Strange Weather, Isn't It?, in terms of pure, unstoppable
momentum. When Fan Death are clicking, they're a force to be reckoned
with, the band's chemistry practically oozing from the songs.
Womb Of Dreams, however, has no Blind. There isn't one particular track that
stands above everything else. Nothing here stands much chance for universally assaulting
clubs and mixes for the rest of the year. But for disco fans holding their collective breaths for a full-on revival
after the last decade's scattered glimmers of hope, Fan Death is, perhaps, a fitting indication of things to come.
Comments
| 
Fan Death MP3s or CDs
Fan Death on Spotify
ALBUM:
