La Roux Quicksand Review
Lily Allen Tour 09 Opening Act, British Dance Pop Duo Release Single
Flamboyant lead singer Elly Jackson, teams with synth player Ben Langmaid, to form the British duo La Roux. Together they unleash their first single, the playful dance-pop gem “Quicksand”.
Released on December 15, “Quicksand” looks set to engulf the world a long overdue revived electronica movement.
Last year’s crop of British invaders brought soul back to the forefront. Amy Winehouse, Duffy, and Adele all proved that blue-eyed soul still strikes a chord among music fans. But since the economy is in the toilet and times are tough, who wants to be blue?
In these difficult economic times, the tough go dancing – cue La Roux.
Pegged by the BBC as the next best thing, La Roux, named for her locks, combines equal parts Lady Ga Ga, Prince and the Eurythmics, with a head full of bouffant red hair not seen since Simply Red, cut more in the style of A Flock of Seagulls.
I’m in the Quicksand
Langmaid expands on his dance scene roots, having worked with Rollo Armstrong of Faithless (and older brother of Dido), performing the synth magic behind Jackson’s belting but quirky vocals.
Building on the 80’s retro sound circa 1984 and updating it, scorching synths swirl around bouncy beats that keep this electro pop track afloat. La Roux’s synth-pop track has that nasty quality of sticking itself to the inside your head, begging to be played again and again.
The track has ‘summer hit’ written all over it, even if untimely released during the dreary winter.
Gender Bending Electronica
La Roux infuses electronic music into this song, not to obscure the lyrics in cold techno, but instead uses it to wrap around words that describe her emotions and musings. This ambitious track sets a trippy, stylish mood, even if the lyrics come off as somewhat sour, gender bending and dire.
“I’m the obsessor”, La Roux sings, “Holdin’ your hand / It seems you have forgotten/ About your man/ Alone in the darkness/ My bed’s a different land/ Your touch intensifies/ And I’m in the quicksand”.
La Roux gets the chance to display “Quicksand” as well as the rest of her debut album later this spring when he opens for Lily Allen on tour in support of the latter’s forthcoming album It’s Not Me, It’s You.
“Quicksand”, released on French independent lable Kitsune, can be heard on the band’s MySpace page or downloaded from iTunes.
La Roux's debut album on Polydor is set for a 2009 release.
La Roux Quicksand
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