Fol Chen/ Part II: The New December

Fol Chen
Part II: The New December
(Asthmatic Kitty)

Glitchy indie pop rides again! Why am I the only one cheering? 'The New December' is an exuberant riot of samples, joy and musical multi-referentiality.
The opening few tracks channel the spirit of weirdo sex-imps from Prince to Har Mar Superstar to 'Midnite Vultures'-era Beck, with the occasional nod to Bowie.
Silly and danceable songs, Fol Chen use them to showcase their love of Michael Jackson and fuzzy tuneful bleeping. But this is not a one-dimensional band. The album is in fact a highly ambitious concept record – although admittedly one that is less pompous and grandiose and far more fun than many. I will, however, leave you to discover the story of their post-apocalyptic world yourselves, and concentrate on the songs.
Moving from the Bollywoodised Prince of ‘In Ruins’ and the other dancey openers, Fol Chen show they are not relying too heavily on their FX kit with chilling slow-burner ‘Men, Beasts or Houses’, and more melody driven tracks such as ‘Adeline (You Always Look So Bored)’, featuring a lovely vocal line reminiscent of a less-intimidating Alison Goldfrapp.
Then there's the lovely title track, an unusual, lilting melody, soft vocals, with a drifting, seaside-and-ice-cream pastel quality to it – it's about as far away as you could get from the jump-up funk of earlier songs.
Thanks to a real mix of vocal styles, the album stays interesting, with a minimum of self-indulgence. Whilst I feel that Fol Chen are at their best when exercising their sense of fun, I am deeply impressed with a band that can pour such creative range into a single album, and pull it off without any filler.