Album Review: The Future Will Come - The Juan Maclean

With the exception of LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver BlackPlastic's favourite DFA album ever is the Juan Maclean's glorious Less Than Human. An ode to the robot it is a glorious body of work that culminates in one of BlackPlastic's favourite ever songs - the delicate electronic anthem, 'Dance With Me'.

The Future Will Come, however, is a different beast. Jettisoning some of the introspection of the previous album this takes a lot of cues from various types of 80s popular music. The Juan Maclean is the alter ego of John Maclean and, with his partner in crime Nancy Whang (who is also part of LCD Soundsystem), he has clearly taken a lot of inspiration from the Human League's Dare! for this album.  Not only are nearly all the tracks on this album vocal duets but John even sounds just like Phil Oakey at several points. John has stated that until working on the vocals for this album with Nancy he didn't like anything in the Human League's catalogue after their transformation once the girls joined, preferring the early 'Being Boiled' era, but that he really began to appreciate it once work on The Future Will Come began and this new found fondness really shows.

So the sound is generally very different from the first album but it isn't a inspirationless re-tread of another act's material either - the vocals are much more prominent but there is still a lot of experimentation going on with the music. Only 'New Bot' really recalls any of the clinical nature of Less Than Human. It's a somewhat appropriate likeness given the title of the song but even this fades away as the chorus kicks in and John and Nancy's League-esque vocal sparring begins.

The Future Will Come is not Less Than Human continued... then. Instead it is an evolution, a fantastic combination of many separate sounds and influences. From the opening 'The Simple Life' the League are there throughout much of this album but there is so much more. Next single 'One Day' mixes snappy vocals with lush Detroit techno - synthetic strings that recall 'Strings of Life' ride melody that sounds like it fell out of New Order's song book when they weren't looking. The result is rather special.

The album's two other highlights can be found in the form of last year's 'Happy House' and the epic midpoint provided by 'Tonight'.  If you haven't already heard it the former is an epic revisitation of pre-nineties house music which only gets better with subsequent listens.  It's an ode to music itself and the beautiful symbiotic relationship between a hot sunny day and the perfect song to dance to. 'Tonight' on the other hand recalls Less Than Human's 'Dance With Me' in terms of the level of emotion - it's a haunting piece and it helps provide much of The Future Will Come's emotional gravitas.

On The Future Will Come the Juan Maclean haven't just re-confirmed their abilities, they've moved the goal posts. This a much more human affair and it benefits from the added warmth.

Please buy, don't steal, this album.  It's available on Amazon.co.uk on CD , LP and MP3.

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Juan Maclean-space / Official Site.

Album Review: How To Make Friends - FM Belfast

BlackPlastic recently got back from a trip to Iceland and long time readers may be aware of the secret crush BlackPlastic harbours for it as a country. Not only is the landscape stunningly beautiful and unlike anything else you can find on earth but they can also write a good tune, despite only having a population of approximately just 320,000.

And if you have ever been to Iceland you just might know that the record store (and independant label) 12 Tónar (danger Will Robinson, some of the site is in Icelandic) is the best place to find said tunes. In all honesty, this is BlackPlastic's favourite place in the world to buy records - up there with Rough Trade East and Foyles' Jazz Café. Nowhere else is as friendly - give them an idea of your tastes and the staff will select a handful of discs, give you a CD player and some headphones and make you an espresso (for gratis) whilst you explore.

And it's a win-win approach - 12 Tónar get the sales and BlackPlastic gets obscure Icelandic music.

BlackPlastic will endeavour to cover most of what was bought over the next few weeks but first up is FM Belfast's début, How To Make Friends. This is a bonus for you, dear reader, because How To Make Friends is a wonderfully quirky, accessible and creative record, sounding like a blend of fellow Icelanders GusGus' more off-the-wall side meets the pure hooks of Muscles with a bit of the 'nothing is sacred' loose summer Hip-Hop vibes of the Go! Team.

It's a winning formula and so 'Pump' is as cheeky and laid-back as 'Par Avion' is summery, excitable and effervescent (very).  Rage Against The Machine's 'Killing In The Name' gets a low-slung funk make over on 'Lotus' and trust us, the lyrics "Fuck you, I won't do what you tell me" pack bags more attitude here.

The whole record is a lush soundtrack to summer that is timed beautifully so that it is never in any danger of outstaying its welcome.

Available at Amazon.co.uk on MP3.

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Album Review: Blood From a Stone - Hanne Hukkelberg

Hailing from Noway, Hanne Hukkelberg's latest album is a perfect soundtrack for the coming of spring, with the sounds of winter still in the background but a playing melodic side breaking through. It sounds like it was made in response to the later evenings we are seeing in the northern hemisphere, and in Blood From a Stone we have an album that begs to be consumed with a bottle of wine of a summer's eve.

Hukkelberg has declared Blood From a Stone her straight up rock album, and whilst many of the vocals were done in one take and there may be hints of death metal in the dread and foreboding of 'Salt of the Earth', to call this album "straight up" anything is to dramatically under-sell things. Inspiration may be taken from PJ Harvey, the Cocteau Twins and the Pixies but it is taken in the form of a desire to never repeat or be pigeon-holed as much as anything else.

Blood From a Stone takes musical inspiration less from other bands and more from nature itself. With the kind of kitchen-sink approach to instrumentation that sees many of Iceland's finest achieve such unique sounds (indeed Múm's in particular have become known for using whatever they can get their hands on), Hanne has utilised bicycle spokes, clogs, a Vaseline box, flag poles, train doors and seagulls amongst many other things to create a melodic sound all of her own.

The result is an album full of surprises - the title track, for example, has a beautiful catchy chorus and yet combines this with a wonderfully tactile and percussive backing - and every track does something a little different.  What makes Blood From a Stone wonderful is that all of these differing components slot together like something made to be together.

Blood From a Stone is released on Nettwerk on 20 April on MP3 and 12 May on CD.  Available to pre-order on Amazon (MP3  / CD).

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Album Review: Hard For Justice - Bronnt Industries Kapital

As Get Physical's latest artist album release, BlackPlastic was a little moist about hearing Bronnt Industries Kapital's third album, Hard For Justice. The sticker on the cover likened it to lots of post-punk bands we like from the first time round, in a room, at the same time.

But the sticker was kind of wrong, because Hard For Justice isn't much like Joy Division at all. Okay, it does have some moody bass work and stripped back, mechanical percussion and post-punk's penchant for experimentalism but this is hardly Just Another Maxïmo Park.

Over the course of its eight tracks, Hard For Justice packs in, erm, zero vocals. None. What it does have however is more ideas than you can shake a stick at. There are ambient moments, brief touches of chiptune, real instruments, synthesizers and a under-current of sleek, minimal kraut-rock that permeates the whole thing. Best of all, 'European Male' sounds like a death threat from someone who, like, really means it - just listen to the bubbling-underneath-seething-rage and the brass. Yes, brass. Brass that sounds not shit, but amazing, as if stolen from a David McCallum track.

The experimentation displayed over the handful of tracks here ensures Hard For Justice will keep giving over the coming months and proves that Get Physical are truly beginning to deliver artist albums proper, straying from just releasing discs from their known artists.

Available from Amazon.co.uk on CD , LP  and MP3 .

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EP Review: Coordinates - I Like Where I Live

As I Like Where I Live, Dave McAdams makes indie-electropop and has just released his first EP, Coordinates, through Slow Receiver Records. And it's free.

This is why you should check it out:

1. It's lovely, like a stroll on the beach or a cup of tea with someone you really like.
2. It sounds a bit like the Postal Service and Stars, amongst others, and we like them. They are super-swell.
3. All five tracks are kind of neat. There is a nice mix of sounds but it all comes together well like a jumper your grandma knitted you.
4. It's less humiliating to use in public than a jumper your grandma knitted you.
5. 'You Took Photographs' is especially great, with a fuzzy little distorted bassline, a lovely vocal and some soaring keyboards.
6. The artwork is good. BlackPlastic likes artwork.
7. It's free.
8. Dave seems like a nice chap.

So there you have it. As it doesn't cost anything it seems a no brainer. Listening to Coordinates is like gazing into a photo of someone you used to love, so why not download it here?  For more news on I Like Where I Live, check out the MySpace page.

Oh, and did we mention it's free?

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