Cults - Cults

The ingredients are all there for a new obsession of mine: a noisepop duo, based in New York City, with a female vocalist and signed to a record label owned by Lily Allen. They're a couple too, which just reassures all of my diehard romantic tendencies. So I treat Brian Oblivion and Madeline Follin with a touch of "too good to be true" cynicism. Yet even from the get-go the duo are quick to pinpoint a number of great influences - they cite the Shangri-Las as a favourite, they've supported Sleigh Bells, Follin's vocals are syrupy childlike (in a Jackson 5 way) - and it's difficult not to get swept up in the hype.

Especially since lo-fi breezy indie-pop is very much en vogue lately, thanks to the likes of Summer Camp, Those Dancing Days or Oh Land. So in an environment where Shirelles and Mamas & Papas records are embraced as tightly as Sonic Youth or Carpenters', it's a little difficult to stand out. So they introduce some twee sounds that could really pass for Swedish pop in 'Abducted', a cute story about Stockholm Syndrome complete with xylophones and a retro backdrop that manages to simultaneously plonk along cutely and strum away sinisterly. 'Go Outside' contains the exact amount of universal appeal to tip it over the verge into "appearance in Eastenders (a UK soap opera)" territory. It's all echoed summery pop with an easy message: have fun.


The frolics come to a halt with the next couple of tracks though - 'You Know What I Mean' frets "Please, please come and save me/ Tell me what's wrong with my brain" over a classic finger-clicking slowburner with urgent percussions - whilst 'Most Wanted' alludes to a drug addiction ("drifting away from my family towards my foes/ my mother told me you'll reap what you sow"). Just which drug exactly could be debated but where's the fun in that? The track is a highlight for me on account of its ragtime tune and some nice riffs.

'Walk at Night' is like a 2010s reinterpretation of Dusty Springfield's "Spooky", with a distinct Motown beat brought up to date with some nice lo-fi guitars: the climax of the song is one of the better moments on the record. 'Never Heal Myself' is a great heap of insecurity with a sugary-sweet melody that, it has to be said, is a little bit filler on account of its simplicity. 'Oh My God' on the other hand is a bright reminder that "I can run away and leave you here to stay inside dreaming" that acts as both a freedom protest and the vents of frustration to a dear one holding you back.

Last.FM is often a good indicator of which tracks are standouts on an album, just by looking at the number of comments it has. 'Never Saw the Point' has zero. Not to write it off completely - it fills the void - but much like most classic Motown records, it's a little repetitive. Then again, such a method to gauge interest isn't always reliable - following track 'Bad Things' is similarly commentless, yet digresses the most from the rest of the album with a heavy use of clunky piano keys and an overall darker sound. 'Bumper' is an almost comical exchange between the duo ("I threw his shit on the floor... lalalalala!") that borders on the theatrical - note the dramatic pause at 1:43 - but is just fantastic.


Final track 'Rave On' digresses further from the album's core sound - an acoustic guitar eventually giving in to a cacophony of 60s sounds, layered vocals and foot-tapping. It's unlikely that anyone pissed off with Motown beats will be a fan of the record, but then, those pissed off with Motown should just piss off entirely. The album acts as a surprising reinterpretation of the genre that's often hardest to pull off (given the time's bounteous supplies of masters - it's hard to better Spector), and is a coup really for sounding so fresh. This will be, for many, the soundtrack to Summer 2011.

Rating: 8.5/10
Highlights: Bumper, Oh My God, Abducted, You Know What I Mean, Go Outside
Avoid: Never Saw the Point
Artwork Watch: Look! They're mid-jump! Shaking their hair! Wild.