album of the week: 8-1

the telephones

DANCE FLOOR MONSTERS

EMI Music Japan (2009)

why you'll love it - happy fun disco punk

why you'll hate it - lots of Engrish and no substance

This is a tragedy right here. DANCE FLOOR MONSTERS is such a fun album, I know I am going to burn out on it very soon. Until then, I'll continue to listen to big dumb loud fun disco-punk nearly every day in my car, and on my iPod at work!

The high pitched Engrish lyrics will soon grate on me, but the songs have such an immediate likability. I think it's because the whole album is so innocent. Almost all the lyrics are generally "CLAP YOUR HANDS EVERYBODY DANCE YEAH!" and there is no tacked on attitude or emotional or political message. Don't get me wrong; I love my intelligent and clever pop bands (The Weakerthans, Mr T Experience...), but I really do respect it when a band just goes "fuck it, this is about fun, let's not shoehorn in anything else."

This is also a big part of what makes DANCE FLOOR MONSTERS such a success over their debut LP, JAPAN; which had just a bit too many slow ballad-like songs that killed the pacing. While there are a few slower songs here as well, they all build to an exciting pace rather quickly. This album is a non-stop party.

I'm enjoying how much this band is evolving from "this is pretty nice fun stuff" to "good grief, this is really fun!" Just like Architecture in Helsinki, they seem to be cutting loose more and more every release and experimenting with more heart-racing material, rather than just trying to please faux-intellectuals.

Disposable? Perhaps... I'll be taking another hard look at this one at the end of the year. Though, you can't argue that the telephones failed in what they were trying to achieve with this album.