The Penelope[s] Echo the Past, but Sound like the Present
Five minutes into Priceless Concrete Echoes I was feeling their music. There was a soothing familiarity to it, like hearing the sounds of our generations past incorporated into the present, and the future. The new waved sonics of “Stuck in Lalaland”; the album’s introduction, sounds something like Simple Minds and early South wrapped in the soaring transients of The Morning After Girls. It’s well executed incremental future-pop, and sounds so effortless and relaxed while it picks you up.
The Depeche Mode-like harmonics (the soaring vocals) and Yaz-styled beats and keyboards on “Licked By Love” make it the perfect sweet 16 track for 2009. I remember one of my sisters favorites at hers (yes, it sounds freaking silly, but she turned me onto some great music back then) was “Don’t Go” by Yaz, so naturally my mind went there upon hearing it. The dreamy tonality of the vocals in “Circle of Seasons” is a seeming tribute to New Order’s immortal “Temptation”. This is a song to play on the way to your after-party, like the aptly titled “Afterhours” by We Are Scientists. Yes; I was a sucker for Nick&Norah’s Infinite Playlist, especially after my friends back in New York called to tell me to go see it. It only made me miss it (because we used to go to all the places in the film, hence the phone call).
Anyway, enough rambling, and pardon all of the metaphoric, goopy comparisons. The music is just that familiar, but manages to sound completely modern. It’s almost difficult to describe. If you were discovering new wave back in the mid to late eighties (the days of the famed WLIR radio out on Long Island – where we discovered everybody from the Smiths to The Cure, to Erasure) you will understand the moment you hear Priceless Concrete Echoes. “Saved” would have been right at home on the Trainspotting soundtrack had it existed at the time. They did a great job putting a dark and twisted stamp on their cover of the Beasties “Sabotage.” Covering the Beastie’s is no easy task, but they chose to truly own their version. It works remarkably well, and got great responses during a poker game last week. Everybody was asking “who the hell is this with this sick cover”. Sometimes that is the best way to gauge whether you’re just gaga over the record because of your own connections to it, or if it’s actually any good (and yes, it all remains subjective).
The hard-hitting, acid-clash basslines and wavy crescendos of ”Long Black Fly” make it a straight floor rocker, and I am anxious to see if there are any hot remixes floating around. I see a dope Mr. C remix happening there (well, I literally don’t right now, but who knows)! “Concrete” is anything but stiff; with its radiating vocals, dynamic slaps and claps, and a poppy mantra chorus. It’s simply infectious. The keys and Lynn Drum-like beats on “Your Plan for Happiness”; the albums closer, are classic Pet Shop Boys.
All in all, the music is splendid throughout Priceless Concrete Echoes. The only drawback are the occasional flat notes. It is not their fault of course, and this is not a shot at their skills by any means. Had a band like this been able to work with a truly seasoned, and musically gifted producer (like Frank Filipetti or Phil Ramone) this would have been fixed with ease, and not by auto-tune or pitch shifting. A great producer can get the best performance out of the artist, by guiding them through and beyond their own capabilities. This small observation is not intended however to tear away the magic that the Penelope[s] managed to create on their recent effort. This album will be humming in my ipod for quite a while. It’s also perfect road-trip music! Check it out, get up from that seat and monitor, and go be out in the world. Priceless Concrete Echoes makes me want to dial up an old friend and journey, journey to some place exciting and safe.
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The Penelope[s] & Morpheus – Stuck in LaLa Land
Sphere: Related Content
Echo my arse and sound like peasants..
Tossers !
Comment by matker gip — August 29, 2009 @ 2:35 pm
wow. its all good. thats whats great about music. its all in the ear of the beholder. like any artform
Comment by Mike Mercer — August 29, 2009 @ 7:18 pm
i’ve been trusting mercers words for years now, and if you knew him, you’d know he’s a real music addict, a man obsessed, and he shares about things that move him. if you think the band is a bunch of tossers – well, thats up to you man
i dug the review
Comment by Sertoglo — August 30, 2009 @ 3:47 am
Having never listened to any of the other bands you mentioned…I’m ready for this one. Your positive vibrations are all that I need.
Comment by Jason Baldwin — August 30, 2009 @ 8:36 pm
Great Article…
Thanks, as always for the “new” music reviews! Michael always seems to be one step ahead of the curve!
I will pass it around… I also dug the review!
Comment by Steffen Franz — August 31, 2009 @ 8:28 am
Great review Mike! Can’t wait to check them out. I haven’t disagreed with anything you’ve written yet. Good stuff as always! Keep it up!!
Comment by SteveO — August 31, 2009 @ 12:57 pm
As always great work Mercer!
Comment by Christina — August 31, 2009 @ 1:52 pm
Excellent insight Mike! Keep writing here and turning us onto new music. Bravo!
Comment by Adam Collins — August 31, 2009 @ 3:50 pm
Welcome on board Mike! Great first article, we’re thrilled to have you join the crew ; )
Comment by Audio Pimpstress — September 2, 2009 @ 11:35 am
I respect Michael’s opinion when it comes to music as well. The way he can wax poetic about HiFi is also a treat for those unfamiliar with his passion for “gear.” But on this one, I think he missed the mark. With the possible exception of “The Heat Goes On,” I found these guys derivative to a fault of the bands Mercer astutely mentions in his review – echoes of Depeche sans the earnest heart – a diluted homage to Morrissey without the soul. This band’s latest effort feels very much to me mired in the past; guided by a compass set by the greats of this genre, but lacking the chops to chart a course of their own.
Comment by David — September 7, 2009 @ 5:21 pm
I can see Davids point here. This strikes at the heart of any critique on music (or any other artform for that matter) as it’s always in the eye of the beholder. I was not referring to the soul of the prolific bands in question (which could never be replicated) rather I was referring the sound of the record, the sonic nostalgia inherent in the Penelopes music. I made these comparisons to try and paint a picture of the sound, not the artists intent. I did this in an attempt to describe the sound itself – which always presents us with challenges. Where he hears a lack of passion and heart – I hear a fresh, uplifting, and cheerful honage to the past that, to my ears, also ushers in the new.
Comment by Mike Mercer — September 8, 2009 @ 2:15 am