A nice blur, but a blur nonetheless.
The Electric Cinema are a four-piece band from Watford, England, composed of a brother, sister and two friends. This self-titled debut album will be released in February, following up last August's sing-along first single 'Heat Exchange' which attracted plays from Xfm and BBC Radio London as well as numerous stations elsewhere in Europe.
The reference to cinema in the band's name is not without significance, as the band came together in order to compose soundtracks for family films and have in fact collaborated with young filmmakers to produce a series of shorts. This can be seen on the band's inevitable myspace page, and is no doubt an original endeavour, however here it is the music, and the music for its own sake, that is under scrutiny.
'Cut Down' opens the album promisingly with foot-tapping lo-fi indie that clearly owes a large debt to The Arcade Fire despite failing to reach their intoxicating intensity of sound. Second track 'I Could Know All Of You' provides music lovers with some appealing lyrics about shutting out the world with one's headphones, but fails to stand out musically speaking.
Sadly, failing to stand out is the theme of this album. You want to like it – the songs are obviously lovingly crafted with time and hard work; they aren't dull and nor do they offend the ears with bad tunes or poorly-penned lyrics. Every track has an identical beat that grows rather wearing however, as does the lead vocalist's small range. A few tracks manage to raise their heads above the water line – 'Heat Exchange' for example, and the upbeat, uplifting 'Monday Morning Radio'. 'Your Manga Eye' also deserves a mention, for its not-quite wall of sound section, catchy chorus and twinkling guitars and keyboards.
For a British band who, comparatively speaking, have not yet received much press attention The Electric Cinema surpass expectations – their sound is refined and not without subtlety (although it does sound more and more like a rip-off of the Arcade Fire with every listen). The album falls down in that it essentially is only backing music, which is all well and good if it is backing music, but people usually expect more when they buy an album. The tracks increasingly blend together as the album progresses, and even after several listens it is difficult to pick out individual tracks from the (albeit pleasant) blur.