The Horrors – Primary Colours
It is, and has been for awhile now, the height of indie fashion to capitalize on a certain romanticized new wave nostalgia. In some cases (TV on the Radio, Bat for Lashes), it results in fresh and exciting sonic explorations. In others, it is derivative and boring, and has us wondering why we haven’t progressed beyond such an artificial musical era. The Horrors’ latest demonstrates worthy contributions to both camps, but succeeds in sounding like an honest to goodness labor of love (even when those efforts may seem misguided.)
It should take no more than 5 minutes for the influences to roll off the tongue – My Bloody Valentine and Joy Division are the most prominent – and though bright as day, you cannot help but find their treatment of the songs commendable (This is, of course, largely the result of a curious team of producers including Geoff Barrow of Portishead, Craig Silvey, and music video director Chris Cunningham). The band is notably unabashed about their audio borrowing, and this self awareness gives them an upper hand over a countless number of imitators (its one of the reasons, after all, we were able to forgive Interpol.)
Naysayers will denounce the record for its unoriginality, but its difficult to miss the charm in “Who Can Say”, whose guitar fuzz and soaring synths find balance with an “oops I’m sexy” Jim Morrison vocal emulation. The song’s wonderful instrumental break, with thumping bass drum, tambourine, and hushed rhythmic speaking, evokes the ghost of 1960’s Phil Spector girl groups. It exemplifies what may be achieved when finely trained ears are able to make musical connections one might not expect. Its also, coincidentally, the one thing that makes Primary Colours occasionally excellent.
