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Staples of the meritable Brille label (responsible for the UK releases of The Knife amongst others), Envelopes are another introverted band with the kick of a... sort of carousel mule.
I don't know if there's anything "barbed" or "menacing" about Smoke in the Desert... as the press release would have it, but there's certainly enough by way of charismatic quirks and upside-down melodies to etch out original lines in your brain.
Original is quite a prosaic term isn't it? But Envelopes are just that in the slinkiest, ramshackle pop way. Like Love Is All doing Lucky Lucky Lucky Pigeons d.i.y or Lucky Lucky Pigeons doing Love is All full on pop-assault madness. I'm not quite sure which. And yes, of course, Envelopes are Swedish.
Smoke in the Desert... pops out from guitar chugs and continues pop-pop-popping with slinky bassline and abstract melodies, male singer Henrik's eccentric vocal postures weaving ebullient trails of fire, while Party is a more downbeat gem that can join the likes of The Knife's We Share Our Mother's Health in the higher realms of slightly surreal new-pop duets, featuring a nice pastiche of Total Eclipse of the Heart ("Once upon a time a was falling in love, now I'm only falling apart / totally fucked from the start") that sways nicely into a well-known Arcade Fire guitar line. Mad.
Both tunes are succulent slabs to leave me slightly drooling at the mouth, and Envelopes are ones you should really be catching at the Camden Crawl at the weekend.
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Mercury Prize 2009 nominees
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