It’s no myth that the pop charts have become staid. We live in a musical climate where songs like
Scream & Shout and Thrift Shop are currently riding high at
the top of the charts; a climate saturated with endless dance tracks about
drinking and shagging produced by robots; a climate where artists are more
concerned with one hit single than creating a full album.
Enter Tegan and Sara.
These twins are unequivocally the best thing to come out of Canada and
the best thing to happen to pop music in a long while.
The girls have fourteen years of experience behind
them, ‘Heartthrob’ being their seventh album since 1999.
Their beginnings were rooted in angst-ridden pop-rock, reaching a
pinnacle with the emo album ‘Sainthood’.
For this new album, they are harking back to their youth but with a
change of style to pure power pop, losing none of their angst in the process. ‘Heartthrob’ is concerned with falling both
in and out of love - as Love They Say explains,
“there’s nothing love can’t do”. The
album’s title is directed less at a single figure and more at the passionate
emotions that love can inspire, both positive and negative.
Like the best pop songs, the lyrics are direct and simple, masking a
wealth of earnest feeling – easily understood, easily relatable and highly
emotive.
And with these love songs, Tegan and Sara have crafted a
series of pop tracks that adhere to old-fashioned rules but, in this day and
age, appear fresh. Sure, the girls have
worked with some of the top pop producers of the moment (including Greg Kurstin
and Rob Cavallo) and the production bubbles and fizzes with contemporary style. But ‘Heartthrob’ is tightly focused into ten
three minute bundles, each one crammed with catchy hooks and sing-along
choruses. This might be frothy pop, but a
hell of a lot of care and love has gone into its creation. It’s youthful and vibrant, playful even, but
there’s equally a maturity and a confidence here.
‘Heartthrob’ does work within a limited sonicscape, with its
own definite style, but what’s so impressive is the album’s consistency. There is not one bad track, a feat that’s
initially overwhelming. Keep listening
and each track’s charms become more apparent.
It’s almost impossible to choose a favourite from such an accomplished
selection of songs. So keep your finger
hovering over that repeat button – resistance is futile.
4/5
Gizzle’s Choice:
* Every track. No
really.
Listen: 'Heartthrob' is released on 11th February. Listen to a preview at PopJustice.
