Wednesday, 24 July 2013

Scissor Sisters- Magic Hour Album Review


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Album- Magic Hour

Artist- Scissor Sisters

Formed in 2001, the Scissor Sisters have become a prominent group in the music industry, with a glamorous persona that incorporates a vast array of musical styles but always sounds fun at heart. Towards the end of 2012 the band announced that they were going on an indefinite hiatus, a declaration bound to leave many of their loyal fan base extremely upset. But does their latest record Magic Hour suggest they shouldn’t be going on this hiatus? Or is this a group who needs a bit of separation from one another musically and rejuvenation?

Track 1- Baby Come Home

Recalling a bit of classic Scissor Sisters, the opening track and third single from the album is a funky pop number that is extremely catchy and quite sweet. The song finds lead male singer of the group Jake Shears telling his beau that he is alright with him going out and doing his thing, but at the end of the day he loves him and just wants his baby to come home to him. The song is lyrically very sweet and with the simplicity of the chorus with the repetitive declaration of baby come home, the song has this sincere quality. The vocal performance is light and feels fun but fragile, with the final sections of the track using some great backing vocals to give the song this almost gospel feel. And with bouncy piano instrumentation and funky guitar, this is just an addictively catchy and light way to kick off the record with.

Track 2- Keep Your Shoes On

The funky groove of the previous track continues with this song, but here the sound is given more of an electronic based tone and has a slight hip hop groove. The song features the group lyrically talking about not wanting to waste time and just get through things to the point where the person should just keep their shoes on, with the song having very overtly sexual tones. The song lyrically perhaps isn’t as catchy as the previous track in terms of the lyrics, however the song is a bit more lively and interesting in terms of the vocal performance, which varies throughout the track and features a great use of Shears higher vocal range to give the track this vibrant and funky edge. The production features a gritty bass and steady rhythm that you can almost dance to whilst also equally be able to chill to, with the transitions between the chorus and verses being particularly good points in the song with the feistiness and grittiness of the dance beats.

3.5/5

Track 3- Inevitable

Co-produced and co-written by American singer songwriter and current chart topper Pharrell Williams, this song slows down the groove a little but doesn’t change to drastically, otherwise the track might be dull. Here we find the group lyrically simply telling this person that the relationship will get better as it is inevitable that their love will blossom once again. The track has a poetic quality but also a lot of the time feels rooted in reality and so is relatable. The song is appealing in the way the chorus goes into a falsetto tone that makes the song both catchy and a little euphoric. The tracks productions is nice with steady electro pop rhythms and a disco driven bridge that feels like the tone of what a rainbow would sound like.

3.5/5  

Track 4- Only the Horses

Co-produced by the current star DJ that is Calvin Harris, Only the Horses was the lead single from this record. A fun dance pop tune with a touch of house music, the songs synth and dance beat driven sound is light and fluorescent, a sound that is just enjoyable and signature Harris. However whilst the song runs the risk of sounding like any other pop song that is released in today’s music world, in stands out through the carefree quality of the vocals that are full of that vitality and slightly camp energy that the band are known for, with the song once again being catchy in the way that the vocals dip between different levels. The song is a bit weird lyrically as the band tell this person who is in some way lost that only the horses can bring them home, but whilst this is weird, the song still sounds lyrically catchy, and the song is also fun in the way that you can find different meanings of what they truly mean depending on your point of view. A fun number that serves as a good lead single.

3.5/5

Track 5- Year of Living Dangerously

Things take more of a 1980’s club feel with this track with a flourish of house music, and find the singers in slightly more of a mid tempo and chilled state. The song has this cool retro vibe and finds the group singing about how this is their life and although they haven’t found that thing that sets them free, they are just gonna search by living dangerously. The song lyrics have a nice darkness about them but like the catchy tone of some of the other track, and the vocal performance doesn’t have the same attention grabbing quality and feels like Shears is just singing the song rather than being truly invested in the song. However the production of the track is really cool, with a nice blend of techno beats, stirring strings and a simple bass that just gives the song this grand retro sheen that is really nice to listen to and which is cool enough to keep you wanting to listen.

3/5

Track 6- Let’s Have a Kiki

A song that is widely seen as truly popularizing the term kiki, a word that is loosely defined as a gathering of friends for gossiping and which is used primarily in gay culture, Let’s Have a Kiki is a fun electro pop tune that has a summery vibe and is perfect music material for girls when they are getting ready for a night out with their friends. The song features female lead singer Ana Matronic taking centre vocally as she starts by simply acting as if she is talking to her friend about this closed down party and how he should prepare for her and others to come over and chat, whilst the rest of the song simply centres on the group telling us to have a kiki and telling us exactly what they mean. The song has a fun and light quality that is infectious in its slight bitchy quality and silly nature. The track features simple vocal performances that are structured tightly and just feel vibrant and infectious. And the production is simple but equally infectious, with some 1980’s inspired rhythms that just create this chilled but fun sound that is guaranteed to get you having a kiki.

4/5

Track 7- Shady Love (featuring Azealia Banks)

Originally the lead single from the record, Shady Love’s release was ultimately cancelled for unknown reasons. The song finds the group employing more of a hip hop sound where they basically tell us of how they are going to get their shady love on and be a bit promiscuous. The song is a bit weird and although vibrant is a bit too much of a change for the band, with the rap style of Shears vocals in the verses sounding like he is trying too hard to be a rapper, whilst the Banks vocals (which are actually uncredited) are nice but don’t add anything to the song. The clunky hip hop rhythms of the track are cool and a bit twisted, giving the song an almost euphoric quality in places, but on the whole this is just a strange track that should have been left off the record.

2.5/5

Track 8- San Luis Obispo

Bringing things back to a more light and funky pop sound is this track that is named after a Californian City. The song finds Shears being left in this town but ultimately just going to be alright as he is going to use his time and find himself in this city. The song has a nice almost summery vibe that is just chilled, although the chorus doesn’t feel as catchy as it could be. The vocal performance here is light and just has the same chilled tone of the lyrics that makes the whole song a nice affair, although the lack of zest within the track does make it a little bit of a let-down. The production doesn’t have the same vitality that we expect from the group but is fun in the way that it infuses more European musical sounds with the guitar strumming and clunky beats, and so this is a nice track that I think would be good to listen to whilst driving in the car in the summer.

3/5

Track 9- Self Control

With a funky and propulsive disco beat that gives the track this 90’s house music/club feel, this track has this dark simmering energy that feels vocal performances that are a little more breathy and in their own way controlled. The song finds the group telling us too fight the feeling and get this sense of self control. The message of the track is great in that different listeners can get different things from it, but the simplicity of the track just simply makes it catchy, whilst the smoothness of the vocals make the song even better. But once again it is the songs production that really makes the song powerful, featuring a great blend of this simple but almost urgent feeling club beats with the steady techno rhythms and some stirring strings in places to just give this track a modern but indebted to past, retro style that is infectious in its own right with ought the vocals and lyrics.

3.5/5

Track 10- Best in Me

With a bouncy techno rhythm that gives the song a great disco groove, this song feels a little bit more modern than the other tracks but still has some old school influences in terms of the synths that feel a bit 1980’s, and so this track is sonically very good with a sort of euphoric quality that is, but also still has strong beats and is something you can dance to. The vocal performances features a nice use of the higher range of Shears vocals and feels sweet, although the vocals are a little bit Auto Tuned and so suffer a little bit. Lyrically the track finds Shears telling this person their love them through the way he expresses how they bring the best out of their character. A really sweet lyrical song that features a great techno sound and is just really cute.

3.5/5

Track 11- The Secret Life of Letters

Things take much more of a fragile tone for this track that features a more acoustic setting for the band and a stepping into ballad territory. The track finds Shears singing about expressing his feelings through words and how this creates this almost secret life. The singer shows of more of a delicate vocal that highlights his vocal tone well and shows that he is a good singer. The production of the track is also emotionally powerful in terms of the simple guitar strumming and deep piano melody being mixed with stirring strings , creating this dramatic sound that builds intensity and provides the record with a moment of purity.

3.5/5

Track 12- Somewhere

The album ends with a light and slightly funky pop number that has a disco sound and all-round groovy feel. The song is lyrically all about how somewhere there is a place of solitude to just lose yourself in, with the lyrics having a simple but poetic quality that makes the song catchy. The track features light vocals that are wistful and appealing, nicely never going to overboard. And with the frenzied but light electro beats and snappy drum beats and light synths, this is a fun pop number to end the album with.

3.5/5

Track 13- Ms. Matronic’s Magic Message (bonus track)

The bonus track is a simple 30 second long track that is a bit of an outro and a bit of an extension of the track Let’s Have a Kiki. The song finds member Ana Matronic calling her friend Pickles and leaving him a message of how she has been to a great kiki and is so happy he like the music, and she has more to offer him. It’s a fun way to end the album and highlights how this record just has an all-round awesome feel.

Final Review

Scissor Sister have given us a great record with their fourth studio album where there is an electic sound that still melds together for a cohesive record and which more often than not is infectiously fun and vibrant. The vocal performance are always on point, the lyrics catchy, and the production funky, glamorous and fun, and so this is definitely a great album that make me feel sad to think it could be a while before we hear any new music.

8.5/10

Best Track- Let’s Have a Kiki

Worst Track- Shady Love (featuring Azealia Banks)

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