The Big Pink -‘Future This’ (4AD)
Back in 2009, the duo Robbie Furze and Milo Cordell released their debut album A Brief History Of Love. Though the band had made an album which owed much to the commercially successful end of electronic-cum-goth (think Mary Chain circa 1992, Depeche Mode et al), they did at one stage suggest that this album would have more of a Hip-Hop feel.
They did retract that statement, though, and whilst it would be doing the band a diservice to say that this record was ‘more of the same’ it it’s not a huge departure from their first record as to alienate those who fell in love with their sound. The two opening tracks ‘Stay Gold’ and ‘Hit the Ground (‘Superman’) set an early highpoint, and have already been single releases at the end of last year. Both suck you in quite quickly, and the latter uses a sample of Laurie Anderson’s hit ‘O Superman’ (with its’ synthesised ‘ah ah ahs’).
Whilst the album does play safe on occasions – with the result that your mind tends to wonder just slightly – there are also some other strong tracks like ’13’ and the closing, beautifully brooding ’77’ that make this album worth investigating beyond the singles.
***1/2
Future This is released by 4AD on January 16.