Hypnotic London Krautrockers TOY returned with their second album of 2019, Songs For Consumption, promising more of their drum machine-based psychedelica, but this time reworking songs that have inspired them. The record is the band’s fifth, the previous four failing to propel them into the critically acclaimed classes of London post-punk, with the likes of Fat White Family and Shame, despite this year’s earlier effort Happy In The Hollow being their most well-received yet.
The record is eight songs long, all of some intrigue but lacking a knockout punch, instead dancing around the rings avoiding punching as much as possible. The drumbeats set a relaxing precedent that are complemented by added layers of lucid percussion and ever so soft vocal delivery. The band have developed a focus on the electronic sound that was so prominent on Happy In The Hollow. This helps them strip these songs down to their barest, and effectively gives you a reminder that when they were first released, the only thing that mattered was the music.
There are some brilliant groovy flicks, particularly on ‘Fun City’, that hold this album together through a quite repetitive journey. The sonics of their earlier work do compliment the reworking of these songs, and at points this is done really well. It would be very easy to get lost in these sounds though, floating a long with the façade of dreamy songs.
However, the pretentious nature of the simplicity is too obvious. It’s been done too many times before. It’s yet another lurch into the abyss of trying to be too cool, and it’s getting boring now. It’s time established bands stopped producing music that wouldn’t be consumed if they weren’t already popular. They could have left this one in the studio I think.
Listen to TOY’s new album yourself on Spotify and Apple Music.
