With the amount of synth-pop duos doing the rounds at the moment it can be a little overwhelming and difficult for them to stick out from the crowd. This isn't a problem that's stood in the way of Chicago pair Love and Radiation who we've been following since late last year. Single 'Ganymede' caught or attention, as did its follow-up 'Three Kingdoms' not long after. Thankfully we haven't had to wait too long for an album, as 'You Will Know Me' is out this week. And if that wasn't enough, we're delighted to be able to offer an exclusive free download of the track 'Iron Child'.
As a whole the album ignores the current trend for all things chilled and '80s sounding, and this is one of the reasons why Love and Radiation don't get lost in the vast ocean of synth-pop tunesmiths. In fact it's quite difficult to pigeonhole them at all, and besides the obvious synth/electro-pop umbrella (which covers an awful lot of different music) they're largely uncategorisable. That said, their music isn't particularly far-out or progressive. They simply concentrate on penning decent songs and present them in whichever way suits them best; and that's one of the key points that makes this such a worthwhile album. It's content over style, not the other way round.
So from twinkly opener 'Winter', a track which verges on dreampop, we're taken on an always enjoyable trip though top-drawer music. 'Iron Child' takes things a little deeper, introducing a more modern sound and extra bass, but it's still a pop song at heart; both of the singles mentioned above have lost none of their magic and they're joined by new tracks that match them every step of the way. The spooky 'Augury' being a particular highlight along with the buzzing and handclap-powered 'Heart Eater', one of the more left-field songs on the record. There's more of an air of mystery about 'Hunger Moon', but ultimately 'You Will Know Me' ends on a lighter note with the lovely 'Look For My Sign'. Not only have Love and Radiation broken free from the current cliched synth-pop duo bracket, they've done so with an album to be proud of.
Love and Radiation's website
Buy the album
Catch them live:
April 25: Cleveland
April 26: Pittsburgh
April 27: Philadelphia
April 28: Washington, D.C.
April 29: Washington, D.C.
April 30: New York
May 1: New York
May 2: New York
May 3: Columbus
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