Goldfrapp – Silver Eye (2017)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 44:52 minutes | 516 MB | Genre: Alternative, Indie
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download – Source: HDTracks | Front cover | © Mute
Following the more intimate folktronica sound of 2013’s Tales of Us, it’s not surprising that Goldfrapp’s seventh and latest full-length studio album, Silver Eye, is a return to the band’s uptempo electronic dance pop sound of Supernature and Black Cherry. For this particular new record, the duo worked with a couple of new collaborators, including John Congleton, whose production credits include St. Vincent and Wild Beasts; the British duo even went to Dallas to work with Congleton!
Given Goldfrapp’s fondness for following one of their albums with its musical and emotional opposite, Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory were due for a fun album to balance 2013’s gorgeously somber Tales of Us. What they deliver with Silver Eye, however, isn’t quite so predictable; instead of swinging between extremes, they stake out a more intriguing middle ground. It’s true that the album begins with a pair of cybersexy movers that are quintessentially Goldfrapp: “Anymore”‘s hydraulic grooves and the Radiophonic Workshop disco of “Systemagic” are untouched by EDM or any other trends that surfaced since the last time the duo made its way to the dancefloor. However, as Silver Eye unfolds, things get more difficult to pin down easily. The hypnotic invocation “Tigerman” and the standout “Become the One,” which pairs tweaked, Knife-like vocals with an undulating beat before shooting into orbit on silvery synths and harmonies, are the first signs that Goldfrapp aren’t working from an obvious template. They continue to subvert expectations on the album’s second half, where they combine reveries that might have been set to orchestral backdrops on previous albums with a largely electronic palette that balances fresh and familiar perfectly. “Faux Suede Drifter”‘s languid majesty harks back to Felt Mountain, but the psychedelic contrails of guitars and backwards vocals feel new, emphasizing the contributions of co-producer the Haxan Cloak and guitarist Leo Abrahams. Similarly, the galloping percussion underpinning “Beast That Never Was” adds a newfound restlessness to its pristine beauty. Just when things might be getting too contemplative, Goldfrapp pick up the pace again with the breezy “Everything Is Never Enough,” which somehow distills their entire body of work into a single song, and “Ocean,” another Haxan Cloak collaboration that closes the album with operatic drama and industrial crunch. At once balanced and eclectic, Silver Eye may be the first Goldfrapp album to represent all the sides of their music equally well — no small feat, considering how long they’ve been dancing to the beat of their own drum machine. ~~ AllMusic Review by Heather Phares
Tracklist:
01 – Anymore
02 – Systemagic
03 – Tigerman
04 – Become The One
05 – Faux Suede Drifter
06 – Zodiac Black
07 – Beast That Never Was
08 – Everything Is Never Enough
09 – Moon In Your Mouth
10 – Ocean
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