JUNIOR BOYS play the Phoenix tonight (Thursday, June 9). See listing. Rating: NNNN
When we thought of Hamilton, sensitive synth-pop used to be the last thing that came to mind, but the international success and critical adoration of Junior Boys has definitely changed that. While this is the first Junior Boys album that wasn’t mainly recorded in the Hammer, there are no obvious traces of Jeremy Greenspan’s time spent writing and recording in Shanghai or Matthew Didemus’s move to Berlin. This is no drastic reinvention of the band, but, rather, a logical expansion of the ideas on their last disc, Begone Dull Care.
That’s not to say it’s a retread. The textures and sounds are lusher, and the latent funk behind their melancholy keyboard pop tunes is less restrained and buried. Greenspan is also sounding much more confident as a vocalist, and seems to be channelling some 80s R&B vibes on many tracks. The melodies are a bit more major key, but if you listen closely, the lyrics are as gloomy as ever (in a good way).
Top track: Banana Ripple