popwreckoning

Released in the fall of 2008, Friendly Fires‘ self-titled album had me at hello. It was the sonic equivalent to the boy next door: a bit naive, a little rough around the edges, a tad tentative, yet completely unpretentious. It winked with the wide-eyed naivete able to win your heart but was sexy enough to make you feel like you were the prettiest girl in the room. Having had a love affair with its predecessor, I knew Pala had to really wow me like a knight in shining armor to even stand a chance against my darling Friendly Fires. Basically, it was an impossibly tall order.

The album was named after the fictional setting of the Aldous Huxley novel Island, and based on that alone, you can tell this album was conceived, written, and recorded with much thought. This time around, lead singer Ed Macfarlane took advantage of writing songs not just in their hometown of St. Albans like for those on Friendly Fires but also Rye in Sussex, the little village Yvetot in France, and New York. He’s talked about wanting to break out of the stereotypes that the media tried to pin on them after their first album, and certainly, no one can accuse them of writing a Friendly Fires pt. 2 with this effort. The problem? Pala is an example of how (usually) less is more. Despite the great care taken to make every sound on this album resonate beautifully (no doubt with producer Paul Epworth‘s help), there is so much going on here and in so many different directions that it’s hard to find continuity.

Having said that, there are some real winners on here. “Live Those Days Tonight,” the album’s first single, is a carnival. The first time I heard it, I hated it. I had already worried based on the “Kiss of Life” single released in the summer of 2009 that Edd Gibson‘s guitar work was going to be muted on their future recordings in favor of a heavier dance sound; for this song and most of Pala, I was right. But the song grew on me: it’s kind of hard to not eventually fall in love with it, because it’s so damn catchy. And if you’ve ever seen Macfarlane dance when the band performs live, the mental image of him swiveling his hips around to the music pops into your mind and is pretty mesmerizing. A good friend of mine just saw the band play at London’s intimate club venue Heaven on May 9 and assured me that the Friendly Fires live performance is better than ever and completely “lush,” and I take his word for it.

Let’s talk about the good. “Show Me Lights,” having a sensual r&b groove, is the stand out track on the album. Interestingly, when you compare this song’s chorus of “take me back / take me back / take me back in the darkness” to “Strobe” from the first album, which begins with the words “I see you / you come out of the strobe / you come out of the strobe,” you notice both songs are about winning back a love, just in opposite lighting situations. Comparing the new track to the old one side by side is like comparing apples and oranges, and in this case, I approve of the newer apple. “Pull Me Back to Earth” lets guitarist Gibson flex his musical muscles – thank goodness. Title track “Pala” is a fantastic slow jam; with Macfarlane’s dreamy vocals, it would have felt completely out of place on Friendly Fires. But it’s a perfect example of my “less is more” argument.

Less successful are the songs that sound like they’re from an earlier time. “Hurting” would have felt at home in the ’70s, and you almost feel compelled to do the hustle to it. The ’80s sounding “Hawaiian Air” has video game-like bleeps. Both this track and “True Love” (guest starring Holy Ghost!‘s Alex Frankel on clavinet) buzz along with Jack Savidge‘s relentless drumming leading the way, and for some reason, they just don’t ring true with me. I’m going to assume that these translate better live than on record, and I hope when the live Pala and I are formally introduced next week in Washington, we’ll get on like a house on fire.

Pala by Friendly Fires will be released in America on May 24 on XL Recordings.

Tracklisting
01. Live Those Days Tonight
02. Blue Cassette
03. Running Away
04. Hawaiian Air
05. Hurting
06. Pala
07. Show Me Lights
08. True Love
09. Pull Me Back to Earth
10. Chimes
11. Helpless

Tour Dates:
May 25 – Webster Hall / New York City
May 26 – 9:30 Club / Washington, DC
May 27 – Paradise / Boston
May 28 – Corona Theatre / Montreal
May 30 – Phoenix / Toronto
May 31 – Lincoln Hall / Chicago
Jun 01 – Varsity Theater / Minneapolis
Jun 04 – Venue / Vancouver
Jun 05 – Neumo’s / Seattle
Jun 06 – Doug Fir / Portland
Jun 08 – Independent / San Francisco
Jun 10 – Music Box @ Henry Fonda / Los Angeles
Jun 11 – Teatro Chino De Six Flags / Mexico City
Jun 12 – Escenica / Monterrey, Mexico

Friendly Fires: website | myspace | Friendly Fires review | Remix Monday: “Skeleton Boy” | @ Black Cat | @ Dot to Dot Festival | interview with pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3 | Mercury Prize Nominations Announced | New Video on MTV, To Play Jimmy Kimmel and Winter Nylon Tour, Release Expanded Version of Debut Album | @ Lollapalooza 2009 | @ le poisson rouge | @ Music Hall of Williamsburg | on Jimmy Kimmel | Remix Monday: “Paris” | @ Paradise | Friendly Fires / Holy Ghost! – 12″ Split Single | Friendly Fires to Release Mix CD Including New Collaboration with Azari & III | Friendly Fires Announce Appearance at South by Southwest and Spring North American Tour, Album Due Out Soon

Friendly Fires, the St. Albans, England electropop band that got bodies moving with “Paris” and “Skeleton Boy,” have announced they will be appearing at South by Southwest in March and will be embarking on a North American tour starting in May. They will be playing two dates in February: February 7 at New York’s Bowery Ballroom and February 9 at the Roxy in Los Angeles.

The dance band’s highly anticipated sophomore album, tentatively titled Pala, is expected to drop sometime this spring on XL Recordings.

Tour Dates:
Feb 07 – Bowery Ballroom / New York City
Feb 09 – Roxy / Los Angeles
Mar 15-19 – South by Southwest / Austin
May 24 – First Unitarian Church / Philadelphia
May 25 – Webster Hall / New York City
May 26 – 9:30 Club / Washington, DC
May 27 – Paradise / Boston
May 28 – Corona Theatre / Montreal
May 30 – Phoenix / Toronto
May 31 – Lincoln Hall / Chicago
Jun 01 – Varsity Theater / Minneapolis
Jun 04 – Venue / Vancouver
Jun 05 – Neumo’s / Seattle
Jun 06 – Doug Fir / Portland
Jun 08 – Independent / San Francisco
Jun 10 – Music Box @ Henry Fonda / Los Angeles

Friendly Fires: website | myspace | Friendly Fires review | Remix Monday: “Skeleton Boy” | @ Black Cat | @ Dot to Dot Festival | interview with pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3 | Mercury Prize Nominations Announced | New Video on MTV, To Play Jimmy Kimmel and Winter Nylon Tour, Release Expanded Version of Debut Album | @ Lollapalooza 2009 | @ le poisson rouge | @ Music Hall of Williamsburg | on Jimmy Kimmel | Remix Monday: “Paris” | @ Paradise | Friendly Fires / Holy Ghost! – 12″ Split Single | Friendly Fires to Release Mix CD Including New Collaboration with Azari & III

The inaugural Winter Nylon Music Tour stopped by Boston’s Paradise Friday night for an absolutely, positively sold-out show. If it is humanly possible, both the headliners Friendly Fires and the opener, current darlings of the blogosphere the xx, keep getting better and better with each additional time I have the privilege of seeing them perform. Both are young bands from England, yet with all the globetrotting they’ve done this year, they’ve honed their skills so that every performance will leave you wanting more. When I heard and subsequently groaned inwardly that the Nylon tour would not be stopping by Washington, I decided a trip up north was in order.

In the case of London’s the xx, their sound is relatively simplistic, but they are extremely successful in bringing out the emotions of anyone who’s ever felt anything for someone else or perhaps more accurately, the xx make you feel you aren’t alone when you’ve lost that magical thing called love. I still can’t get over how guitarist Romy Madley-Croft and bassist Oliver Sim‘s voices, though gentle, can be so poignant and achingly beautiful, causing you the listener to feel the same yearning that exists in the heart of their songs in your bones.

This was the first time the band had ever played in Boston (not counting the in-store they played three hours earlier at Newbury Comics), and the excited crowd was certainly appreciative of their visit. They took to the stage on time at 9. The extended live version of “Basic Space,” their second single released on Young Turks in the UK in August, confused some members of the audience, some of them prematurely clapping while the band headed into an outro not on the album. “Fantasy,” starting off with Sim’s spare, scorching vocals paired with Madley-Croft’s fantastic guitar playing, was a major highlight, as was “Nighttime,” with such monstrous beats from Jamie Smith that you felt the backbeats pounding through your body.

“Infinity,” an example of serious yearning turned into an xx song, starts with guitar work that is as sensual at those in Chris Isaak‘s “Wicked Game.” But what the xx’s tune has over Isaak’s are the call and response lyrics of “I can’t give it up / to someone else’s touch / because I care too much” between Madley-Croft and Sim, punctuated by Smith’s drum machine and cymbal crashing. Talk about dramatic to the max and perfectly suited for their usual black attire and minimalist stage set-up. Be sure to catch this trio when they tour America starting in March 2010, first on a short tour of their own on the eastern half of the U.S., followed by a couple of dates opening for Hot Chip.

The xx Set List:
Intro
VCR
Basic Space
Fantasy
Shelter
Islands
Nighttime
Infinity

Like clockwork, crew set up quickly for the main event, St. Albans’ own Friendly Fires, so that they were ready to roll punctually at the Paradise-appointed time of 10:15. This band’s shows are 100 times better than their records because you get the full audio and visual experience right in front of you. On this particular night, multi-colored lights flashed feverishly across the stage, lending a carnival-like atmosphere quite appropriate for this kind of music. On stage left is drummer Jack Savidge on his riser, beating on his drums at a furious pace that it’s a wonder he ever manages to leave a gig with his hands intact. In the center of it all is lead singer Ed Macfarlane with his bevy of synthesizers ever at the ready, in front of touring bassist Rob Lee and their touring brass section (trumpeter and saxophonist). And lastly and certainly not least, on stage right is guitarist Edd Gibson shredding it on his axe in a way that should inspire generations to pick up a guitar and try it for themselves.

Having not seen them in about four months, I’d nearly forgotten just how tremendously punishing physically their set is on all the players. This was their second to last date on a grueling 3-week tour of North America, and I’d heard that everyone by this point was exhausted (and understandably so). However, I didn’t see any indication that the band wasn’t giving their usual 110%. When it came time for Macfarlane to break out his now world-famous dance moves, the man showed no sign of fatigue, most memorably on the wonky-waltzy “White Diamonds,” to which he threw his whole body into the song. “Photobooth,” an ode to young lovers taking an innocent photograph together, was preceded by him saying, “Are you going to join us [in the revelry and dance]?” Thanks to a long guitar cord, throughout the set Gibson was able to run back and forth across the Paradise stage, climbing on top of a speaker in front of Savidge several times to serenade those up in the balcony. So very rock ‘n’ roll.

While the throng was vocal in their appreciation for the Fires’ music, some people in the crowd clearly needed to loosen up, so much that Ed Mac had to implore, “Come on Boston, dance with me, please!” When they played “On Board,” then “Paris” (the obvious crowd-pleaser), the audience was finally moving and grooving in a way that the band approved. While it was disappointing that they played the exact same set list that I’ve gotten used to and we didn’t get a preview of the four songs Friendly Fires have already finished for album #2, we’ll have the new material and a brand-new set list to look forward to the next time they visit us stateside. The band’s sophomore album is expected to be released in May 2010. I can’t wait.

Friendly Fires Set List:
Lovesick
Jump in the Pool
Skeleton Boy
In the Hospital
White Diamonds
Strobe
Kiss of Life
Photobooth
On Board
Paris
//
Ex Lover

Friendly Fires: website | myspace | Friendly Fires review | Remix Monday: “Skeleton Boy” | @ Black Cat | @ Dot to Dot Festival | interview with pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3 | Mercury Prize Nominations Announced | New Video on MTV, To Play Jimmy Kimmel and Winter Nylon Tour, Release Expanded Version of Debut Album | @ Lollapalooza 2009 | @ le poisson rouge | @ Music Hall of Williamsburg | on Jimmy Kimmel | Remix Monday: “Paris”
The xx: website | myspace | @ Music Hall of Williamsburg | @ DC9