Theatre Of Disco – Theatre Of Disco (Risky Disco/Inertia)

0

While not officially a Future Classic release, appearing on their new sister label Risky Disco, Theatre Of Disco have some close affiliations with that label and build upon its aesthetics. That is, a sound which has the ability to keep those on the dancefloor moving yet always with intelligent and forward thinking production.

One of the key aspects that sets Theatre Of Disco apart from regular dancefloor fodder is the treatments applied to the singing in the actual songs present. Chief producer Oli Chang is formerly of Ubin and the trademark vocal production of that incarnation is still in evidence and most welcome here. It’s an intricate and razor sharp cutting and splicing which gives the vocals an added rhythmic drive while retaining their melodic focus. Multiple voices, both male and female, intertwine in a vocal reinforcement of the sexuality inherent in the pulsing grooves. Humour is also infused as narrated sections are slyly edited to surreal effect, best heard in ‘Donnie Darko’.

While engaging the intellect, the music also aims relentlessly at the feet. Current dancefloor cliches are avoided and in their place is driving synthetic funk, often as cut up as the vocals but always maintaining a propulsive forward momentum. The sonic pallette stretches to staccatto string samples in ‘Larry’, clean and distorted electric guitars in ‘Oke’ and ‘Party At Plato’s’, along with the regular bleeping, squealing and filtered synths. Lyrical concerns cover the typical dancing, partying and STDs yet somehow never degenerate into the banal. A strong sense of the absurd sees to that.

This is thoughtful, exciting music. At seven tracks, it’s generous for an EP release and maintains a consistent, high quality which makes it well worth seeking out.

Adrian Elmer

Share.

About Author

Adrian Elmer is a visual artist, graphic designer, label owner, musician, footballer, subbuteo nerd and art teacher, who also loves listening to music. He prefers his own biases to be evident in his review writing because, let's face it, he can't really be objective.

Comments are closed.