It’s 20 years since a youthful trio called bis appeared as an unsigned band on Top of The Pops. The trio have made a comeback recently, but one member, Sci-Fi Steven, has also launched a parallel career.
In truth, the twelve tracks here don’t deviate much from the bis blueprint – spiky, electronic pop with robotic beats and pneumatic synths. Steven’s influences are still very apparent – sure to appeal to fans of XTC and Devo, the existential angst in the lyrics is countered by a self-confessed penchant for Adam and The Ants. Which makes for a dozen undeniably catchy tunes that could sit comfortably on prime time TV.
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@isthismusic review Batteries. Take a look and leave a comment: http://t.co/DLnIlm9Gw6 @SciFiSteven of @thebandbis https://t.co/zzRVuMI4YK
@isthismusic have reviewed the ‘Batteries’ album. Take a look and leave your comments. is this music? http://t.co/A9jFH2Nttc @SciFiSteven 🔋
It’s difficult when a band you already admire, have individual members release solo projects.
There’s a sense of loyalty to the band…and a fear of the possibility that it may not be as good as the band from which they came from.
I’ve always liked Bis.
I’ve always had loads of time for their individual offshoots and everything they’ve turned their lovely wee Glaswegian hands to.
Batteries, however, is a whole new ball game.
Forget what you know about Bis.
Actually, DON’T.
For all of the perceptions about them, Bis actually made some incredibly brilliant, catchy, and sadly overlooked pop records, that while people may have thought was an easy thing to do….they were so consistent at it, it became more and more difficult to deny that they knew EXACTLY what they were doing….and with aplomb.
So while it’s not a huge leap of the imagination to expect some resemblance of his other work, Sci Fi Steven has taken it a step further.
This IS in some way, the big brother of Bis…the angrier, more cynical, spikier, punkier big brother…with a record collection to die for.
Whether it was intentional or not, there are so many brilliant reference points in this album.
You can hear Devo, XTC, Adam and The Ants, even bits of Cardiacs here and there (No, but really), and a whole host of other delights…which increase with every listen.
But to restrict it would be doing it a disservice…..it’s very much it’s OWN animal.
And what an animal it is.
It’s spikey as fuck, it’s punk, it’s angular, it has some simply sublime choruses coming out of nowhere, then pogo-ing up and down all over the place….and it’s twice as clever as you think it is.
I would normally recommend individual tracks to start with…but in the case of this album, the beauty of it, is that it’s so consistent all the way through, it’s like a ‘best of’, and not a debut.
If you must INSIST on a stating point……go here –
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mdJhZtuyFg
And if THAT doesn’t give an absolutely mouthwatering taste to rush out and buy the album…..well, you need you head checked.
Is it THAT good?
No.
It’s better than that.
When your record contains as many ideas as a Prince album and each song more energy, wit and sheer creativity than most bands manage in a career, trying to sum it up in 4 adjectives is probably pointless.
It’s only fair to say that this is both like, and unlike the bis blueprint, and both in good ways. It’s the Schrodingers cat of music. The more you look into it the more you’ll find, the less you’ll understand and the more you will want to know.
Album of the year. Almost any year.