Pala
Friendly Fires’ 2008 eponymous debut introduced a promising band with an uncanny knack for songwriting, but it also revealed the them as genre neophytes, trying on bygone musical styles like vintage clothing. With *Pala*, the Hertfordshire, England–based trio solidify their sound. Over a dance-punk foundation, Friendly Fires trim their tunes with trace elements of disco, soul, dream-pop, and post-punk. The instantly winsome “Live Those Days Tonight” opens, pulsing on cosmopolitan dance-pop. Without reverting to retro rehash, the tune recalls moments of neon brilliance last heard in 1986. The following “Blue Cassette” starts like an early Daft Punk outtake before unraveling into a gigantic swooning anthem where the band somehow fuses a \'80s New Romantic–flavored chorus with verses enveloped in electro-pop. This creates a well-oiled machine of innovative, kinetic dance music loaded to the gills with pop hooks. “Hurting” is another solid standout, where glossy disco rhythms and blue-eyed soul melodies braid together. “Pull Me Back to Earth” remains festive amid its gauzy soundscapes.
UK band continues to make high-stakes music that excels best when acknowledging its dance-rock present rather than its emotive past.
After being nominated for a Mercury Prize, why not give your fans more of what they want? At least that seems to be Friendly Fires' theory.
Friendly Fires mix rave dynamics with soaring indie to good effect on their second album, writes <strong>Kitty Empire</strong>
With Pala, Friendly Fires manages to oust any uncertainties hanging over their pop sensibilities once and for all.
<strong>Dave Simpson</strong> predicts festival and barbeque ubiquity for Friendly Fires' second album