Crystal Fighters/ Star of Love

Crystal Fighters
Star of Love
(Zirkulo)

We have a tiny admission to make… We first heard of Crystal Fighters at a time when using the word ‘crystal’ in band names seemed particularly popular. Consequently, we’ve accidentally referred to Crystal Fighters as Crystal Castles, Crystal Stilts and The Crystal Method in conversations with others – although we only really use the last one when we’re feeling particularly ‘gangster’.
Praise various deities then, that the band has now released album that we can tie their name too – and a mighty good one at that. No longer reduced to bit-parts on Kitsuné compilations, Crystal Fighters seem to have come into their own, showing off their floor-filling chops whilst also highlighting the fact that there are some remarkably talented musicians underneath.
The dubstep leanings of ‘Swallow’ prove that the filthy bass on instant classic, ‘I Love London’, was anything but a fluke - but then the laidback scuttle of ‘Champion Sound’ and percussive rumble of ‘I Do This Everyday’ throw you in a completely different direction, reminding you that this is an album of great variety – and that’s perhaps what’s most shocking about this LP.
‘Star of Love’ does everything a good debut album ought to do, hitting all the right foot-shuffling marks and leaving the listener longing for more. Crystal Fighters are more than ready for the floor, but listeners need to remember that for every wonky bass line on display, there’s also a tremendous amount of intricate and interesting instrumentation that show this lot really are a rare talent that you’d be foolish to ignore.