La Roux – Uptight Downtown
SoundCloud
It’s been five years since La Roux first broke through with their self-titled debut, and since then quite a lot has changed. Producer Ben Langmaid has stepped aside, and in his place Ian Sherwin has joined frontwoman, Elly Jackson. Together the pair has created, in Jackson’s own words, a “warmer, sexier” album. After spinning it a number of times now I’m inclined to agree on both fronts.
The electro-infused synth pop of La Roux’s debut is still in tact as the latter part of the album shows, but previous sounds and ideas take a backseat to a more tropically inclined approach on Trouble in Paradise. So much so, in fact, that this feels a lot more like a fresh start than a tired attempt to pick up where Jackson left off. The overall tone of the album is lighter, brighter and warmer than her previous work, and technically it feels more finely tuned and fuller. Instrumentally the album is pushed by percussion, shimmering and breezy synth sounds and guitar licks that have dub and funk qualities to them. Vocal layerings are much tighter and the integration of Jackson’s voice with the more bubbly musical direction creates a number of colorful and crystallized melodies.
From a lyrical standpoint the album is quite cohesive with what the title suggests. Sure, there’s straight up love songs on there, but there are also twists of complications as La Roux injects the conversation with topics such as sexuality and infidelity. The songwriting isn’t always great and there are moments where things fall into more generic and obvious territories, but the intentions are always good. When coupled with the flavorsome approach to instrumentation, these kinds of issues are easily bypassed. As the record moves a little further away from the new and closer to the familiar in it’s latter stages, its gauge is loosened a little. By this point, however, Trouble in Paradise has already made a number of impressive and infectious moves, and again, these minor infractions make no real impact in regards to the bigger picture.
If you ever find yourself looking for a good examples of how pop music is still relevant, fun and engaging, then this is a great specimen to have in your back pocket. Although we seem to be once more accelerating into the trend of sterile, manufactured boy/girl groups where pop is concerned, it’s great to know there are still some artists applying both passion and intelligence to their output.
