Among the burgeoning indie scene of the mid to late 00’s emerged LCD Soundsystem, a unique dance-punk/indietronica band. What is best described as a man having a mid-life crisis with a synthesizer, LCD Soundsystem is, for lack of a better word, unique. Their debut single, Losing My Edge (released in 2002), is 8 minutes long and full of nothing. A looping drum machine and synth boringly take up space as lead vocalist James Murphy, in his usual pretentious manner, croons about being obsolete. Sure, some of the lyrics could be found funny, but that’s about its only redeeming quality. My roommate describes it as “just a guy talking over background music” and I couldn’t agree with him more. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing (i.e. Joy Division, Gorillaz, even the Talking Heads at times) – but Murphy just didn’t do it well.
Their self-titled debut, released in 2005, was more of the same boring, bland, bloated electronica. Just before they faded into obscurity, though, they broke through their distasteful beginnings and released Sound of Silver in 2007 which is a fun, engaging, and energetic dance-punk (dare I say disco?) record. I’ll go more in-depth with this album in a future review, but with the release of Sound of Silver LCD Soundsystem proved they had enormous potential despite a rocky beginning. Their next album, This is Happening, burst through the ceiling in 2010 and cemented LCD Soundsystem as the definitive band of their genre.
If you’ve read any of my previous reviews, you’d know that I’m a fan of long, 7+ minute epics – and oh boy, there are a ton on this album. Six of the nine songs on here are at least seven minutes long, and honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Longer songs hold a great amount of potential but are also vulnerable to being boring, drawn-out pieces that take themselves too seriously (such as LCD Soundsystem’s debut). On This is Happening, however, all but one track are great. From the 9-minute-long EDM opener “Dance Yrself Clean” to the 7-minute depressingly sentimental closer “Home,” they’re all masterfully done in their own respect.
The opener, titled “Dance Yrself Clean”, begins quietly. A slow bass marches along behind a clap rhythm and quiet vocals – quiet enough that you’ll need to turn your speakers up. At just past the 3 minute mark, though, the song explodes in volume as it does a complete 180 into EDM territory. Punchy synths are added, as well as a human drum player, and Murphy’s vocals intensify to bring the energy up to max. Many say this is LCD Soundsystem’s best track, and while it’s definitely in their top three, I disagree. Glossing over “All My Friends” from Sound of Silver, I’d say the heir to the LCD crown would be the final track of this album, entitled “Home.” Like “Dance Yrself Clean,” “Home” starts out with skeletal instrumentation: a single bass note, simple drum pattern, and a synth arpeggio. It slowly builds up in intensity to the point of being incredibly cathartic towards the end. It’s a true masterpiece.
As music’s own rags-to-riches story, LCD Soundsystem built themselves from the ground up and went from releasing arguably boring music to indietronica masterworks. I highly recommend This is Happening to anyone who wants to dive into indietronica but hasn’t yet.
