Album Review: Muscles - Manhood

Muscles' last LP, released in 2007, certainly stood out amongst a swathe of indie-electronic outfits, with its bounty of glimmery, synth-laden party tracks and a distinctive talent for turning very ordinary lyrics into tangible and, admittedly, addictive music.

Fast forward, and in a particularly 'safe' fashion, Muscles has not deviated from his former musical repertoire, with the highly distinctive echoes of his previous sound still present. The opener, Kiss Hello, jumps head first into dizzying electro, complete with his signature “woos” (as you may recall from his breakout hit, Icecream). Indicating that he is not afraid to experiment with a bit of sarcasm and tackiness, Ready For A Fight is both perky and deliciously garish with the first half of the track indulging shamelessly in plenty of “Uh-huh-yeah-s!” which punctuate the buoyant club-appropriate beats. As the album progresses, Muscles flirts with house music, the track 1823 being an obvious example. Although these few steps toward the house genre may sound a tad irksome to some, rest assured it is delivered in very limited quantities, as he hastily reverts back to his original sound on following tracks.

Arguably, the standout feature of this album is that his music is, once again, highly emotive, with its feel-good albeit clichéd aesthetic. But curiously, it does it without sounding cheap or irritating. After a five year hiatus, it certainly was a good move to stick to what he does best and therefore achieve a good result; offering up plenty of tracks which are easily enjoyable.