Yello – Toy (Universal Music)
LP / CD / DL
Out Now
7/10
Review by Liz Keating.
Dieter Meier is a millionaire, professional poker player,
winemaker and silk scarf designer. You might imagine him sporting a cravat, a
neat waxed moustache and a slightly ironic expression. You’d be right. You
might imagine his voice as a bassy self-assured growl. Right again.
But this is where the predictability ends, as he is also one
half of Yello, who have, for nearly four decades, been right at the sharp edge
of Euro Synth-pop. His bandmate Boris Blank, synth-wizard and ‘sound collector’,
composes all of the music, presumably just in time for Meier to alight from a
helicopter - freshly plucked from the deck of a yacht - and purr laconic words
into a microphone.
Following the soundscape of ’Frautonium Intro’, the album
springs into life with lead single ‘Limbo’. The upbeat tempo and scatterings of
cowbell elevate the track, although it still fails to reach the heights it
really should: there are several better tracks on the album. In fact, the
highlights don’t really start coming until ‘Starlight Scene’, a sultry, bass
heavy track, showing off Yello’s moodier side. ‘Dark Side’ is in a similar
vein: “Show me your dark side / I wanna lose my mind” Meier intones over
ethereal backing vocals. The fizzing synth and witty lyrics of ‘Tool of Love’
see them going back to the wry, ironic nature they are known and loved for.
Towards the end of the album the cinematic ‘Pacific AM’ exudes an exotic aura
and almost melts into the rhythms of ‘Blue Biscuit’, a summery track closed by
a distant thunderclap. The trio of instrumental tracks on the deluxe version of
the album seem slightly unnecessary, although there is an interesting disparity
between the atmospheric calm of Magma and the somewhat frenetic,
industrial-sounding Toy Square. The four collaborative efforts featuring Fifi
Rong and Malia seem to detract from the album somewhat, as Yello’s uniqueness
is heavily rooted in Meier’s distinctive vocals. This does provide a nice
contrast, however, especially against Rong’s breathy, delicate voice on ‘Kiss
the Cloud’.
All in all, Yello have something for everyone here, despite
having absolutely nothing to prove. Yello have always been seen to be at their best
when they don’t take themselves too seriously but on this occasion, their
darker work steals the show.
No comments:
Post a Comment