Tim: Speaking of pointless BBC brands, as we were earlier this week, this lot won this year’s Sound of… poll, and for once it’s actually a pretty good choice.
Tom: Oh! That synth intro surprised me a bit: it sounded almost like a video game soundtrack from ten years ago.
Tim: Some lovely synthpop floating around here, starting calm and gentle and building up to a great big second half that just works so well.
Tom: It sounds a bit like early Hot Chip, if they were working with a guest vocalist. That’s a compliment, by the way.
Tim: Synthpop’s never really been much of a genre that lends itself well to emotional tracks and conveying tight links between lyrics and sounds, but this track gives it a good go.
Example: that “oh-oh-oh” into the chorus, while admittedly not being the most interesting lyrical choice we’ve heard, it sure as hell works well as an intro into that chorus as a pleasing sign of desperation. Second example: the shortness of breath that appears in the closing “let go” repetitions – just please won’t you LET GO.
Tom: The thing is, I don’t listen to much synthpop — it’s generally a bit too ethereal and downbeat for me — so hearing something like this is really quite refreshing.
Tim: If I were to compare it to anything I’d say: album track by The Sound of Arrows (speaking of whom, WILL YOU PLEASE GET ON WITH IT), deemed too loud and out of the ordinary for their standard fare, but still very, very good. All in all, I’d say this is a thoroughly deserved winner. Congratulations, lads.