During early parts of many types of events, we always like to spin a few mellower indie songs, and lately tunes from Phoenix, Camera Obscura and Death Cab for Cutie have been making it into our sets. But this new single from the Australian band Cut Copy might soon be added, as its light dance groove and catchy chorus stuck pleasantly in my head the first time I listened to it. I think once we start playing it, people will be coming up and interestedly asking, “Who is this?”
I think this partly because the song has such an inviting and catchy chorus, but also because the band sounds slightly like about 17 other bands from the ‘80s and ‘90s, both popular and obscure: The debonair-sounding vocals of the verses recall the male singer from the band Human League; the dirgy guitars seem like the Cure’s; a backing vocal that seems piped in from a monestary is reminiscent of The Ocean Blue; the electronic instrumental break that leads up to the first chorus channels Daft Punk; the chorus, with its airy vocals and vague lyrics about a broken relationship, evokes the blissful melancholy of classic New Order; and the synthesizer fills during the chorus sound like those from a Sugarhill Gang single. Others may see different bands from the same era of music in this song, or even more artists than I’ve mentioned, but you get the idea.
The great thing about the song, though, is that out of all these spare parts from (mostly) bands past their prime, Cut Copy creates something that sounds much fresher than it should. I think it’s simply because if you take enough different past sounds, put them together in the right way, and produce them with the right energy, you’re bound to get something that sounds not just like the sum of its parts, but like something quite original.
That said, if you miss the sound of some of these aforementioned bands, you’ll really like this song.
July 28, 2008