Hercules and love Affair
It would appear that 4 disco maniacs have attacked our stereos, reminiscing with the Bee Gee’s days and opening a new can of worms for genre hoppers everywhere. Andrew Butler is the man to blame apparently, getting together a few of his mates and creating what is now known as ‘Hercules and Love Affair’.
I thought it was a Gnarls Barkley side project at first, opening track ‘Time Will’ is most definitely evocative of album stuff from the creators of floor filler “crazy” and I guess I would be forgiven more or less instantly for this slight comparison. But as the album bursts at the seams with disco beats and excitement, you can’t help but think this is something special. 1970’s flashed before my unborn eyes and took me back to afro hair and dazzling, glamorous shades of purple.
The lead singer from Anthony and The Johnson’s adds a certain spark to the record, a brilliant usage of his vocal talent and the dramatic change from mellow mercury prize winner to extrovert dance classic is a step that he has taken on steady rocks.
It’s funky, no doubt about it and will probably be grasped hold of by DJ’s and remixes alike, turned into techno dance tunes and filling floors worldwide. I like the fresh approach, the dance chill vibe it carries throughout. And I’m not the only one, NME and the Guardian have also written rave reviews, warming immediately to the fusion of decades evident in every track.
What I love the most about the album is you feel as though you are listening to a compilation, but a compilation which doesn’t require track skipping on those commercial overplayed numbers, but instead flows magnificently. The different vocalists add to this appeal, using both male and female singers to entice the listener.
One downside I guess (but trust me I’m clasping at straws), the album as a whole is so easy listening that it is quite clearly in danger of becoming easily forgotten. ‘Easy ‘ is nothing special, and feels very much like an album filler, but this has to be overlooked in comparison to what else has been put on offer. It’s so much more chilled out then I imagined, and could be classified as critically elevator music like.
Yet not by me, or anybody in need of a music industry shift. The production is mind blowing, ‘Iris’ one of my favourites- primarily because the vocals of Naomi and Anthony are beautiful alongside one another. It would (or shall I say will?) be a shame when the music is ripped apart and turned into an up tempo dance classic, because Andrew Butler has made a masterpiece. At first I wasn’t impressed, in fact I turned it off half way through. But to create an atmosphere, a moment, a romanticism. This is the CD for you. The hype was right, Massive Attack revamped and there you have it. Maybe the David of the industry is set to destroy the goliath?