Klaxons

I had a friend who told me a bit about these guys, mainly that they were a good mix of electronic and rock. Being that I am a fan of industrial, d&b, grunge, and yes - getting into some of the new prog like Muse these days; I thought this cd would be worth checking out. I'd of course Youtubed, heard Golden Skans, Its Not Over Yet, and I liked the dissonant and glitchy flavor of it matching the more 70's and 80's punk type flairs that a lot of British bands like to pepper their sound with.

Listening to this cd on the first round, glad I got it but wasn't sure if it was something I'd listen to a lot. By second listen I was pretty certain of one thing at least - they do have an addictive element. Any band that has something coherent about their music emotionally and has something to offer, it may not sink in immediately but as you listen to it off an on and have it grip with your every day life a little; it finds a context of its own. In essence, this is one of those cd's that will grow on you.

My take in the end - they have talent, they have good ideas, you can hear it in the music, but at the same time I think their style will most likely go through a lot more refinement. That and I would imagine that the next cd they drop, whether it happens in 2009, 2010, will probably be much improved and a lot of the fray points on this cd will be shored up. I don't think the critics jumped the gun on touting these guys, the potential is definitely there, I just think that they're in the same spot that Alice In Chains was with Facelift - the best of their potential is still in the offing.

There has been a plethora of great British bands over the last few years; Kaiser Chiefs, the Kooks, Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, Franz Ferdinand, and Hard-Fi to mention a few. Add to that list Klaxons, winners of the 2007 Mercury music prize (they beat out Amy Winehouse's "Back to black" as well as the Arctic Monkey's "Favourite worst nightmare").

"Myths of the near future" (named after a short story collection by J. G. Ballard) is the debut album from the English trio and it comprises 11 energetic (often raucous) songs running just over 35 minutes in total. Everything on this CD is upbeat, and their sound (a hybrid of rock, dance, and electronic) has been labelled Nu rave. Opening cut "Two receivers" has some insistent piano tinkling, set to a hard hitting beat and a buzzing riff, while a klaxon sound runs through the tempo shifting "Atlantis to interzone".

Next up is my favourite, "Golden skans" (fell in love with this when I saw the video), a shimmery song with a very catchy chorus (love those Ooo ooo ooohs running in the background). Lovely! A #7 hit in the UK, this was the biggest hit of the singles.

"Totem on the timeline" is more urgent with buzzing guitars, the Blur-like "As above, so below" sets distorted guitars to a Motown beat, the fuzzy laid back "Isle of her" wouldn't sound out of place on a Gorillaz album, "Gravity's rainbow" has skittery beats, electronic effects and chanted vocals, "Forgotten works" (with a groovy bassline) is dance rock, "Magick" features drum-machine-demolishing beats alternating with a quieter eerie feel, "It's not over yet" (similar to "Golden skans", this is actually a remake of a dance song by Grace), and closing is the fuzzy upbeat apocalyptic "Four horsemen of 2012" with spoken lyrics.

Catchy, danceable, fun filled music, the album made #2 in the UK. Look out for their collaboration on the Chemical Brother's Grammy winning CD "We are the night" (on the song "All rights reversed").

Klaxons are another band that's popped up on the indie rock circuit. I came across their album Myths of the Near Future and picked it up, and I found that it's pretty good.

George Dionne's review is pretty accurate, but I'll still say that although I'm not sure what songs they released from this album, the only song that sounded familiar to me was "Golden Skans", which is easily the best song on the album. "Two Receivers" and "It's Not Over Yet" are also pretty good. But sometimes you run into songs with problems, whether it be a whole bunch of noise and not much else ("Four Horsemen of 2012") or just plain senselessness ("Atlantis to Interzone" -- I understand that most indie rock songs are just supposed to make you think, but that song is just a little TOO out there). And I can do without "Isle of Her".

Everything else on the album is okay. While I wouldn't necessarily call Klaxons "the next big thing", Myths of the Near Future is an album that should keep indie rock purists satisfied.

Anthony Rupert

The Good
With just one listen of the opening track "Two Receivers," you'll realize this isn't your typical rock album. In fact, with all of the effects and keyboard tones, the Klaxons could easily be defined as a throwback to the 80s new wave era mixes with the progressive pop rock of today. "Atlantis to Interzone" has more of a club or dance feel to it, but mixes in some great vocal melodies and drum beats to make it a fist-pumper rather than a toe tapper. "Totem on the Timeline" recalls a Devo influence with its effects heavy rhythms and layered vocals. Chunky bass and guitar riffs dominate "Frailty's Rainbow." The watery guitar licks are quite intriguing. "Magick" will spellbind you with a repetitive vocal hook and numbing instrumental tones.

The Bad
Can be a bit too experimental at times. May be hard for U.S. music fans to swallow as nothing like this really exists on the American airwaves.

The Verdict
Myths of the Near Future is certainly unique in it's delivery, but I'm not sure that everyone is ready to embrace it's highly experimental and effects heavy sound. The vocals are dead-pan new wave, and the rhythms are pure pop, but the total sound may only appeal to the art-embracing Europeans.

This album is one of the best albums in the past few months. The best mix of rock and electronic music that I got to hear lately, like nothing else. It's like they started their own wave of new rock. This is a MUST!

If you're unfamiliar with Klaxons, I wouldn't suggest this as an initial experience. While the good parts of their sound are evident in this early release, the work that Polydor did with them in the studio for their first full album obviously paid off. So if you're new, check out the album 'Myths of the Near Future,' which came out in January. All of the songs are much tighter and more palatable. Barring that, you'd do well to check out the first two tracks on this CD (Gravity's Rainbox and Atlantis to Interzone) or search for videos on YouTube to get a better idea of their current direction.

However, if you're a fan already and, like myself, are wringing your hands and wanting more, you'll find a snippet or two of goodness here to help hold you over until the next album. Unfortunately, the remixes don't bring much to the mix (no pun intended), and you'll probably just find yourself lusting for the more polished sound of Myths. Be that as it may, it's Klaxons - and for that I'm willing to forgive the muddy bass and tiring loops.

All in all, not a great standalone album for the new fan, but the world can always use more Klaxons.

they remind me of the early 90's dance scene rave era. okay this e.p. is really something to check out all songs really key in. the first two singles GRAVITY'S RAINBOW & ATLANTIS TO INTERZONE will attract you in with it's vibe rythms and vocals. while the 2 b-sides and remixs will differ from the like. thought the songs THE BOUNCER & FOUR HORSEMEN OF 2012 sounds like there titles are mixed they might ending up being the con of the ep. then there are the remixs sorry to say but the only remix worthy here is the one of gravity's. plus if you buy the physical disc you get a bonus video (gravity's rainbow)!!!

British music gets worse every month. I don't know how they keep the downward slide going, but they do. You'd think at some point the UK divisions of the major labels just wouldn't be able to find any bands in their country that were worse than the ones they'd already signed, the lameness would plateau, but they manage to keep finding worse and worse bands. Even if I tried to write the worst music I possibly could I couldn't write music that would be as offensive to my ears as this band. They make Swans, Whitehouse, Shellac and Nickelback seem like amateurs at the art of being unlistenable.

The lyrics are interesting, I liked the samples used. It was somewhat redundant, but if you like dance pop, go for it!