music
Perverse, erotic, exotic, sensual, dreamlike and atomospheric have all been used to describe the sound of British electronic duo Goldfrapp. One half glam rock diva Alison Goldfrapp, other half classically trained Will Gregory provide us with piercing, pulsating synths, soaring strings and delicate vocals.
It was their second album Black Cherry that introduced me to the wonderful world of Goldfrapp. I stumbled across Goldfrapp purely by chance. I had heard ‘Strict Machine’ on a TV programme but at the time didn’t know the tracks title let alone it was by Goldfrapp - dare I say it, I thought it was a new Kylie Minogue single - sorry Goldfrapp ! But now I can see whay I thought that - Kylie and/or her record company have certainly been inspired by the Goldfrapp sound. A few weeks later I saw a small promotional card in HMV for Black Cherry and thought I’d give it a try. To my unexpected pleasure on it was that track - Strict Machine.
“Definitely music to be ravished to” NME. “Black Cherry is laudable, challenging and immensely enjoyable” The Guardian. “Black Cherry is a Moroder meets Morricone affair, sexually explicit with a dancefloor electro flavour” promote Mute
For some considerable time after purchasing Black Cherry I stupidly ignored their debut album Felt Mountain. For what reason I’m not entirely sure but the album cover of mild brown tones and Alison’s heard morphing into its relection didn’t particularly inspire me to buy it. However, I did buy the DVD Wonderful Electric and on it were some fantastic songs from Felt Mountain including Lovely Head, Human and Utopia which is now probably my favourte track of all time, not only by Goldfrapp but by any artist. Its eerie opening together with its deep pulsating synths and of course Alisons amazing operatic voice combine to make a unique beautiful piece of music.
Of their debut album, the critics commented “Sublime, decadent, twisted, elegant. Perfection.” asserted NME. “Stunning. Some of the dreamiest soundscapes this side of Morricone,” announced Muzik. “Stirring and magnificent,” praised Q. “Felt Mountain is dark, twisted, nasty and extremely satisfying. Get some,” urged Later. “This is more than a brilliant LP, it’s the sound of a bench being marked. We are not worthy,” opined Time Out
Their 3rd and latest album is the glam rock and 80’s inspired electronic masterpiece that is Supernature. Even if you haven’t heard of the name Goldfrapp you will have heard Ooh La La somewhere in the last 12 months as its been used on a multitude of adverts, most notably the T-Mobile advert. Whereas Black Cherry was something altogether different from Felt Mountain, Supernature takes its lead from the previous album giving us more sensual lyrics and pounding synths but with a slightly more Pop feel. At the time of writing this entry, four tracks have already been released as singles. If Goldfrapp wanted to go mainstream then they certainly achieved it with Supernature.
My Favourite Goldfrapp tracks are:
From Felt Mountain
Utopia, Human & Lovely Head
From Black Cherry
Strict Machine, Tip Toe, Train & Twist
From Supernature
All of it but Lovely 2 C U is awesome
Check out their official website here
And a very good fan website here