Relentless Indie Pop
‘Music For Men’ is The Gossip’s first major label studio album and has a hard act to follow after the success of 2006’s ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’ and the ensuing fervour. This album retains much of the spunky, lithe energy that catapulted the band into the heart of a growing music scene. Such is her charisma that Beth Ditto’s sharp vocals could make pretty much any tune interesting.
Rock opener, ‘8th Wonder’ benefits from jagged guitars that build to rumbling crescendos and thrashing percussion, proving that The Gossip are not a one woman show. ‘Heavy Cross’ quickly proves itself to be the hit tune from this album, like a funked up ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’ with more brooding “oohs” and interesting dynamics to keep your attention between the frenzied disco-friendly choruses.
While every tune very much keeps the sound that The Gossip are so well known for, there is a variety of styles on display here: ‘Dimestore Diamond’ has a slow, soulful groove while ‘Four Letter Word’ has more of an 80’s electro feel with a catchy rhythm. Jangly, ‘2012’ is a neat, angsty little number that uses the band’s electro energy to best effect, proving that they can do far more than simply produce upbeat pop songs. ‘Long Distance Love’ especially shows off the band’s ability to stamp their own style on any tune as the sly little line, “I heard it through the bassline, not much longer will you be my baby” apes the Motown classic but in true Ditto style.
So we’ve clarified that The Gossip have style in all areas; Beth Ditto was even classified a style icon by NME, but the main problem with this album is that every single song is a bold, upbeat number and by the tenth track I’m starting to feel a little exhausted and hoping for something really different, or just a break. If you love The Gossip this album is great for you, but a whole album of disco classics is just a bit too much for an afternoon’s listening. In any case The Gossip have definitely achieved their objective of producing an album with as many powerful hits as their previous LP, which is to be seen as a success.