Cicada: 'Metropolis'
This track had me annoyed within seconds of pressing ‘play’. But four and a half minutes later, I thought I quite liked it. So what happened in between? Free cheese samples in the supermarket? It stopped raining? Or maybe I heard a nice tune?
The distain was due to the intro, a fairly dull loop of bass and drums. Which was unfair, perhaps, as I think this may just be an introduction made for mixing, but this piece doesn't sound like a DJ's track. It sounds like a vocal electro-pop tune, and it has a very familiar retro late 70s/ early 80s setting. What, again? I mean, this 80s revival is a bit old now, huh? It was awesome when the Parisian Beatles themselves, Daft Punk, first made an overtly updated version with their second album, Discovery, in 2001. But Les Rhythmes Digitales, Vitalic, some gratuitous Madonna singles, that Mylo/ Miami Sound Machine mash-up and a good deal more later, and it is beginning to sound a bit stale and unexciting. All that has really changed is that now the drums are a bit beefier.
But this pretty obvious heritage doesn’t detract from the fact that this is a really nice song to listen to. The bass line sounds great with its synth and bass guitar, even if the notes and rhythm of it are a bit standard. This weighty bass and the thickened-up 80s drums make a striking contrast with Heidrun Björnsdottir’s vocal sweetness, whilst the song itself stays interesting and has a nice flow: it’s actually quite a satisfying listen in the end. Cicada are usually known for their remixes (they churn out about seven a year, on average), but it’s good to hear them still distilling their niche of the grand old 80s revisitation.
Words: Christopher Cook
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