Label - French Horn Rebellion LLC
BLURB - French Horn Rebellion are perhaps the best live show in New York. Their energy and drunken enthusiasm at their shows make their electronic DJ sets can't-miss parties. After releasing some singles and EP's, they've finally released their first full length album in "The Infinite Music of French Horn Rebellion." What's unfortunate is that the record is somewhat lacking in the ability to adequately reflect their buoyant, energetic dance grooves. The album does have some hits on it, but much of the record is filled with spacious and sometimes tedious breaks that are constantly detracting from the fun. At it's core, 'The Infinite Music of French Horn Rebellion' is a collection of party jams from two hipsters in Brooklyn looking to have a good time. The release is listenable but nothing spectacular - if you really want to get down, go see them live.
Rating - 7 out of 10
FULL STORY - I've probably seen French Horn Rebellion five or six times, and they never disappoint. Perhaps this is why I'm a little taken back by the lack of out-of-this-world dance grooves...I was probably expecting too much. That being said, there certainly are some bright spots on the album.
'Body Electric,' the album's second song has a european garage-trance feel to it that exudes hipster partyism. The track does sound a little bit too 3Oh3! for me, but I can look past this. The highlight of 'Body Electric' has to be the dynamic bridge as it effectively delivers some great 80's synth solos over a bed of chunky bass lines.
The eighth track, 'Up All Night' is likely French Horn Rebellion's most familiar song. The band really started gaining their street cred from this song alone, and we're able to parlay that hit into a music video and numerous remixes. 'Up All Night' is a song you can't wait to hear at a party. It's lively, energetic and fun. There are hooks and melodies everywhere that get welded into your brain before you know it. Much of the music is filled with video-game-sounding synth riffs that serve as the hooks and focal points for the song.
'This Moment' delivers the best dance groove on the album and has a distinct disco feel. The bass lines are cranked up on this track and help to provide some much appreciated funk. Essentially 'This Moment' has two separate sections (verse and chorus) and they do a marvelous job of complimenting each other. Both have different tempos, but are unique and creative enough to keep the song's momentum on track. The chorus on "This Moment' is probably the sturdiest of the album (maybe second to 'Up All Night') and has a great singalong quality to it. All in all, 'This Moment' is one of the better tracks on the album, and is just fun to listen to.
'Last Summer' is one of the surprises of the album and is uncharacteristically slow for French Horn Rebellion - but it works. The song is much in the vein of 80's pop and has an eery similarity to The Police's 'I'll Be Watching You,' of all things. Halfway through, the song dives off the deep end into a weird chorus filled with, what else, french horns. I'm not really sure what they were trying to accomplish with this - it doesn't fit with 'Last Summer' and detracts from how great the song actually could have been.
The only other tracks really worth mentioning are 'What I Want' and 'Geomancer's Compass and Other Quasi-Scientific Findings,' with the latter sounding like something George Clinton would have made had he been on acid and sitting in front of laptops and synthesizers for an afternoon. 'What I Want' returns to a more digital-pop vibe that is actually one of the album's stronger tunes - you can't help but think why it was placed last on the record.
Ultimately, "The Infinite Music of French Horn Rebellion" is something of a let down. In between all of their catchy dance tracks are head-scratching, ambient interludes that don't serve any real purpose on the album. You can make the argument that these were put there to provide transitions for each of the songs, but it doesn't really work. I've had the album for two days now and find myself sub-consciously skipping over all of these medleys. The other main factor that detracts from the album are the poor vocals. I've been able to look past them because of how sick some of the music is, but they do appear to be the elephant in the room. Luckily for French Horn Rebellion, it's their music and creative do-it-yourself digital approach that's made them who they are. The album is definitely worth checking out, but if you really wanted to experience the greatness of French Horn Rebellion you're going to have to see them live.
Tracks
1.) The Void and Fancy Free
2.) The Body Electric
3.) Broken Heart
4.) New Florida
5.) Brasilia Girl
6.) Mawson's Peak
7.) Antarctica / The Decision
8.) Up All Night
9.) This Moment
10.) Last Summer
11.) Geomancer's Compass and Other Quasi-Scientific Findings
12.) Running Through the Wild
13.) The Cantor Meets the Alien
14.) What I Want
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