The words "icy electro" usually fill me with dread - probably going to be some dead-eyed coked-out tunelessness in thrall to the worst things about the 80's. And italo-disco, I've tried to love you, I really have, but most of you is just shit. The Cheese-String basslines, the serious ethereal vocals, the bongo/twinkle percussion - it all sounds like the soundtrack to a gay John Carpenter film. So Glass Candy, equipped with icy electro lead singer and italo-disco trumpet sounds were prodding my "bullshit" knee-jerk.
But they've actually nailed one of the hardest conundrums in pop, namely to imbue tundra-like sonics with humid soul. It takes alchemical genius to fuse such base matter into gold. Ida No's vocals are perhaps the best thing about "Candy Castle" - her tone is reminiscent of Miss Kittin's still-breathtaking performance on "Madame Hollywood", showing a flickering vulnerability behind an impassive cocaine screen. It's a very traditionally cool performance, but its yearning, unironic vocals and teary-eyed diva edge elevate it above mere hipster posturing. Her backing is Moroder-grade purity, keening strings layered above syncopated pulses and prowling low-end. It's apt that they've covered Kraftwerk's "Computer Love", which is pretty much the benchmark for this kind of velveteen-mercury electropop.
If you want more Candy then you can visit their
myspace which has three more new tracks to download for free. And fansite Crystal Migraine has some older tracks to download as well.
1 comment:
I didn't realise that Noel Fielding was in a band...
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