School “SoLong”

05 Jan 2014 — Henry Schiller

School sound like New Order but they don't sound like they're trying to sound like New Order. Excellent: as we all know you should never sound like you’re trying. Vocals on "SoLong" have enough energy to shake some actual life into exactly the kind of lyrics you expect to populate the sullenly insistent synth-pop we're dealing with here. Something slippery and weird beneath the surface, too; dustmites of synthwork that sound almost inquisitive, and a bassline that rides fat globs of tone. It sounds like a sheet of aluminum getting bent in a pummeling rain. Fadeout at the end is gloriously reminiscent of “Some Girls are Bigger Than Others.” Not the kind of thing you here too often these days, come to think of it. Strangely, this place of dying is where some of “SoLong”’s best guitar work seems to have anchored itself. Couldn't you guys have let it run a little longer? No worries, no worries: I'm more than happy with this song as is.

"SoLong" is out now on Luxury Records.