02/01/2010

sydney morning herald review

ART ROCK

TELAFONICA
Love On The Second Stair
(4-4-2 Music)

This mysterious Sydney outfit have made a deliciously eclectic record, centred on an almost liquid approach to electronic music but ranging across folk, pop and down-tuned rock. Fuzzy beats one minute; tinkling piano the next. Drifting washes of voices occassionally; outright pretty vocals at other times. Warm trumpet in the background and then accordian. And that's just the song Cover, which appears in the second half of the album and kicks off a strong finish.

That's just the thing: just when you think you've heard what it's all about, Telafonica find another turn to take. Female voices do most of the heavy lifting but the male voice has a weary-relaxed tone, which catches you on the rise.

There's a similar approach to Brits like Tunng and the Accidental, who have taken laptops to the folk world and made it seem as natural as a leather jerkin. You can also hear touches of Bjork (particularly in Time to Move the Nest, which starts in Iceland and finishes in Manchester 1980) and the almost-ancient Sydneysiders Severed Heads (Don't Speak For Me).

An intriguing album to start with; a rewarding and entertaining one to finish.

Bernard Zuel
The Sydney Morning Herald - Spectrum - January 2-3, 2010

2 comments:

ian m said...

fine review. especially Severed Heads as reference marker.

Leyne Elbourne said...

nice one :)