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Consisting of vocalist Richard Bjorklund (who some of you may also know as one half of Monofader with IOC's Seb Komor), guitarist Kent Nilsen and Bjorn H. Bjornil, Spektralized should float your boat if your tastes favour the easier end of future pop with a lively, polished, dynamic and easily accessable sound that, despite sticking pretty rigidly to the established future-pop template and doing very little to make any real mark of individuality, still provides an engaging listen. There are a couple of surprises at the start with "The Beginning" proving probably one of the best instrumental openers I've heard in a long time, leading straight into "Of The End", where the rapid breakbeats are another somewhat unexpected touch, adding a slightly harder, pacier edge to this otherwise poppy piece which boasts the all-important memorable chorus with excellent vocals (which are a constant feature of the album) that add to the song's inherent catchiness. From here on in, however, we're on very familiar ground with definate nods towards Icon Of Coil's softer works and Pride and Fall, a well-trodden musical path for sure but Spektralized prove there's still plenty of inspiration to be had and the album is sure to have a wide appeal in the UK with some fine piano work making the melancolic and emotive "Beneath U" one to remember while some fine guitar work adds an extra touch of grit to the dancey and full-blooded numbers "Broken Thorn" and "No Control", with Bjorklund's expressive vocals doing their best Ronan Harris impression. The expressive qualities that his voice brings should never be underestimated, proving its worth throughout and working equally well on the slightly trancey "So Strong" which keeps interest high before the slower "Dark Days" ends the album on a slightly more reflective note. I guess this album is what Amricans refer to as a 'no-brainer' in that it sticks faithfully to an easy-going and well-established musical style, never veering far from the established template but there's no doubt that what they do they know how to do well and with such a considerable potential for widespread appeal I fully expect to see this album raising the band's profile and fanbase by some margin. |
