Asobi Seksu - Fluorescence (Polyvinyl)

NYC two-piece Asobi Seksu make prettily archetypal shoegaze songs ( I was going to say nu-gaze but it makes me want to barf) made atypical with schizophrenic vocals and playful eighties electronica. They are easily comparable to My Bloody Valentine with their sloping upbeat intros, and Yuki Chikudate’s warbling, echoed vocal instantly exposes her to be a Cocteau Twins fan. These observations come easily with most ‘dream pop’ releases, but there are stronger links here to the pop than the dream. Although Fluorescence is as hazy and mellow as a sunny afternoon spent on mushrooms, the gossamer-thin atmosphere of the album floats around a core of strong, catchy pop music. A strong resemblance to Strawberry Switchblade and Saturdays=Youth era M83 makes this release stand alone as something with more substance than many of the dreamy, layered, effect heavy, releases that are bound to flood the indie charts this year.

Coming up is aptly named, there is a youthful 80s exuberance to the track which would fit nicely amongst Psychedelic Furs and Simple Minds in a John Hughes movie. Trails has some pretty impressive operatic-style vocal gymnastics.Perfectly crystal took me back to my teenage bedroom, the wispy vocals echo like a memory, and secures it as a track to come back to time and again. Love Will Tear Us Apart drums and guitar feature on clanging cacophony of a track, Leave The drummer Out There. The album is varied and not afraid to take chances, and some of the best parts of Fluorescence are where guitarist James Hanna experiments with a more joyful sound, and Chikudate turns her hand to singing in Japanese. Sigh sees high pitched little-girl vocals turn into womanly ooh-ing, and erratic keys become scratchy Johnny Greenwood guitars. It is a trilling pop hit, in the vein of Arcade Fire, and it’s fabulous. Moreover,Trance Out, with its punky J-Pop intro and danceable melodies shows the versatility the band is capable of. Some tracks are a little draining, and seem to go nowhere (Counterglow, Ocean) but overall, this release is a delight to behold. Come February 14^th I will be eschewing the purchase of chocolates or soft toys and spending my money on the clear pink vinyl edition (available for pre-order through their MySpace page), and I suggest you do the same.

Words : Maya Boustany

La Sera – La Sera (Hardly Art)

Vivian Girls are one of my favourite bands of late because they are a little heavier, a little darker, a little rockier than the other acts making Spector inspired twee-pop. Which is why, by all intents and purposes, Katy Goodman’s candyfloss and teacups side project La Sera shouldn’t have engaged me as much as it has. It is a dream record, in more ways than one. Her voice is rasping silk, woven in and out of maudlin drums and Beach Boys guitar. It is less Shangri La’s and more Sandy Shaw. A summer afternoon 45” with a picture of a teddy bear on the cover played by a little girl on a pink plastic record player. Get the picture? It’s soft, it’s cute, and it doesn’t apologise.

Comparisons will come thick and fast at this time of femme-pop market saturation. La Sera will remind you lyrically of First Aid Kit, musically of Warpaint, and vocally of Metrics’ Emily Haines or Giant Drag’s Annie Hardy (but 10 years ago before the rock and roll lifestyle gruffed her up). There are also heavy notes of shoegaze artists Cocteau Twins and My Bloody Valentine. Personally I found the ‘all girls together’ sleepover vibe, and light as a feather breathy singing, harked back to Girls Together Outrageously and Tyrannosaurus Rex, respectively. It is probably closest, however, to everyone’s favourite new band, Best Coast. This might sound schizophrenic, but in taking from the past, La Sera documents well the signature sound of 2011.

Picking out the best songs on this album is hard, and here in lies the one fault with La Sera, repetition. You could easily say that messing with a perfect system is needless, and there are shifts in mood here, but they are small to say the least. Single Never Come Around is upbeat playful pop. You’re Going to Cry is archetypal sixties girlgroup with its layered vocal and dreary subject matter. Hold is a psychedelic trance-like euphoria, evoking flower fields, maxi dresses, and mushrooms. Dove Into Love is heartbreaking and romantic, as is much of the album.

After falling in love with Vivian Girls I didn’t think I could feel any more gratitude to them than that I’ve been harnessing since the release of 2009s Everything Goes Wrong, but my love affair with Katy Goodman has been rejuvenated with this shot of girlish flower power romance, and I’m swooning at the thought of spending 2011 holed up in a love-lorn idyll with La Sera.

Words : Maya Boustany