Hercules And Love Affair - Hercules And Love Affair

DFA

For 25 minutes, this promises to be one of the debuts of the year, and then it all just goes slightly awry. The debut album from New York City’s Andrew Butler and friends (including Antony of Antony & The Johnsons), Hercules And Love Affair is steeped in classic disco and house. There’s a camp exuberance to the first half of the record that is genuinely exciting, as Antony sheds his mournful image and gives it some, possibly covered in glitter. The lead single and cornerstone of the record, ‘Blind’, is powered by an impossibly bouncy bassline, disco hi-hats and exuberant percussion. Antony’s soulful voice soars over the top and we have dancefloor nirvana.

Throughout, the record is impeccably produced by Butler and DFA’s Tim Goldsworthy. Here and there, they’ll throw in a joyous slab of brass, and it’s on the energetic club tracks that everything comes together. Towards the end, however, the mood becomes more contemplative and the album suffers. Songs like ‘Iris’, ‘Easy’ and ‘This Is My Love’ just can’t compete with the energy and infectiousness of ‘Blind’ and ‘Athene’ (which features Brooklyn’s acid-house DJ Kim Ann on vocals). There’s half a classic album here. Maybe next time they’ll make it all the way. Chris Jones

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DOWNLOAD: ‘HERCULES’ THEME’, ‘BLIND’, ‘ATHENE’.
FOR FANS OF: CHIC, 808 STATE, ANTONY & THE JOHNSONS.

Issue #51 - I Told You This Would Be A Good Issue

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