1/1/2023 0 Comments The rapture echoesThe Rapture are a New York indie rock band, sometimes referred to as The Disco Strokes. The song "House of Jealous Lovers" was also ranked sixth on NME's "100 Tracks Of The Decade". Resident Advisor ranked the album 35th best of the decade. They also honored the songs "I Need Your Love" at #323 and "House of Jealous Lovers" at #16 on their best songs of the 2000s countdown. The album garnered much critical praise from Pitchfork Media, who hailed the album as the best of 2003. The reckless, wounded-heart abandon found in the lyrics, combined with the infectious grooves coursing throughout the album, still lead back to the dancing frenzy fans expect.Echoes is the debut full-length album by dance-punk band The Rapture, released in 2003. However, Echoes ultimately showcases a more sophisticated, restrained, and successful take on the fusion of guitar riffs and electronic beats. The Rapture may be faulted for covering much of the same ground they have in the past. While lyrics aren’t the bands strong suit by any means, these songs demonstrate a progression within the band’s songwriting from the screamed vocals found on some of the album’s other tracks. Alongside the darker “Infatuation”, a gloomy meditation on unrequited love, the band ends the album with a hint of things to come. “Love Is All” finds Jenner pleading that love is all he needs over instrumentals that feel like later-period Television. The more surprising moments happen when the Rapture let down their guard and attempt more traditional songwriting. Moments of crashing guitars and screaming vocals that raise the music to a near panic pop up throughout Echoes, but they are better utilized this time around, while the raunchy guitar licks are more effective when used sparingly. “Heaven”, an engaging example of mechanized funk, is exhibit A in that regard. Most of the tracks featuring dance beats also contain infectious guitar hooks. The Rapture sounds more mature here, but that doesn’t mean the band has lost its notorious energy and drive. The upbeat “Sister Savior”, featuring warm, layered keyboard tracks supporting the lyrics, faintly brings to mind the electronic pop of New Order. “I Need Your Love” sees the group incorporating keyboards like a classic electro track, while a reworking of one of their older tracks, “Olio”, includes a drum line that recalls early Detroit techno and adds a hint of despair. The band’s much-hyped single, “House of Jealous Lovers ” - a tune that layers the increasingly uninhibited screaming of vocalist Luke Jenner over a rollicking bass line - headlines a collection of tracks landing all over the dance spectrum. The band, both thematically and lyrically, has always explored dark territory, but this time they seem to draw something from the dangerously decadent beats of someone like Tiga. Compared to the more angsty sound of the Rapture’s earlier album, Mirror, and other releases which mix rough-edged vocals, lock-step beats and frenzied guitar riffs, the focus of Echoes is on tracks driven by dance-friendly beats. The change results mostly from a shift in style. Now, the band comes off a bit more calm and collected, and it pays off. #THE RAPTURE ECHOES FREE#Before, listening to the Rapture’s muscular guitar playing might conjure up visions of a wild and free performance. This album shows the band focus their raw, unhinged energy into a more sleek and aerodynamic package. On their new album, Echoes, the Rapture answer this question - and prove their own relevancy - by polishing up familiar dance-punk material and making it shine. With the current decline of ’80s inspired music, how does the Rapture, an original post-punk revival group famous for the dance beats found within their music, evolve while the sound that made them famous is going out of style? Dance-punk, a genre mixing dirty electronics and gruff punk guitar, never reached widespread critical acclaim outside of indie circles, and a recent crop of new entrants into the genre are merely churning out hackneyed beats. Electroclash, having achieved buzzword status, represents a trend that’s time has past. Musically, an ’80s obsession doesn’t hold the same fascination it once did. Honestly, how many times has E! run the Emmanuel Lewis True Hollywood Story? When will the lessons sink in? Think about it: networks like VH1 and E! profiteer recklessly from America’s cultural fascination for Reagan-Era pop stars. As cable television programmers will confess, there is nothing at all wrong with obsessing about the ’80s.
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