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South London electro pop outfit Chew Lips are having a fine year; their debut album Unicorn (which we reviewed here) was an elegant slice of heartfelt pop music that deserves to be chart material.
Artist: Chew Lips
Title: Unicorn
Label: Family
Genre: Electro Pop
Format: CD, Digital
Buy From: Juno Records, Juno Download
The South-London dance-pop outfit Chew Lips, led by singular front lady Tigs and accompanied by the multi-instrumentalists Sanderson and Watkins, adorned many a “ones to watch” list in 2009.
And indeed the adept boy-girl-boy trio stormed the British electronic dance-pop scene last year. Chew Lips showed considerable songwriting skill when releasing two singles on Kitsune, ¨Solo¨ and ¨Salt Air¨, and have now released their debut album Unicorn through Family. Then they showed considerable guts and left both those tracks off the album.
The result is startling – Chew Lips take us on an astonishing jaunt on Unicorn, consorted by teeth-hurting sweet vocals, striking bass lines, persistent drums and dartly synthesizers. The album locomotes from slow, affective ballads like ¨Piano Song¨ and the somewhat sinister track ¨Gold Key¨ to rhythmic dancefloor fillers such as ¨Play Together¨ and, the most appealing track of the album,¨Seven¨. And although Unicorn provides us a wide variety of flavors and melodies, every track leans heavily on Tigs’ exquisite and severe vocals.
And precisely this combination of vocals and vigorously assembled instrumentals is what distinguishes Chew Lips from the current flood of other electro-pop artists, there’s more acuity to it. Unicorn is a record you’ll want to listen to until you know every sound and strain by heart.
Review: Izza Brouwer
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Artist: Various
Title: Kitsuné Maison Volume 8
Label: Kitsuné
Genre: Disco/Nu-Disco
Format: CD, Digital
Buy From: Juno Records, Juno Download
Now in its eighth volume, the Kitsuné Maison series has carved its niche scooping up electro talent from across the globe, a feat that is becoming increasingly difficult in a day and age when the public can watch every part of a bands (often awkward) gestation on the internet, and the hype surrounding new artists has reached unsustainable levels.
Still, each Kitsuné compilation has unearthed a gem or two – the Mogs’ “Kelly Blame” from Kitsune X release being a prime example – and it’s often the little oddities that make these compilations a worthy addition to the collection.
This latest effort is a shamelessly uplifting affair, seeing the catchy pop of British upstarts My Tiger My Timing and Chew Lips nestled alongside Siriusmo’s thought-provoking electronica and sweaty dancefloor fodder from the former Riot in Belgium man Beni (touched up by Harvard Bass).
There’s some highly-anticipated new material from Melbourne trio Midnight Juggernauts, with “New Technology”, the first single of their upcoming album, a notable inclusion. Meanwhile the lo-fi stylings of New Jersey’s Memory Tapes has to be one of the album’s highlights.
Only time will tell how this will stand up against previous Kitsuné releases – it’s always interesting to note which acts become huge and which drift into obscurity – but it’s a safe bet a fair smattering of these artists will go on to bigger things.
Review: Aaron Coultate
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