Bristol-based electronica trio Concrete Disco are established purveyors of immersive sound journeys, but their new album As the Crow Flies represents a landmark moment in their history. Spearheaded by multi-instrumentalist and main songwriter Jonny Wharton, together with brothers Joe (keys/laptop) and Dom Cusack (drums/samplers), the 13-track release traverses the personal and cultural, interweaving elevated dance rhythms and reflective subjects.
The immersive journey opens with 'Reaching Up', a driving breakbeat prayer to optimism, and establishes the flaming forward motion that propels the album. The following track, 'Brambles', grooves in and around Gorillaz-style melody with guest Chinese Malaysian rapper Kai Wei. Tracks like 'Jitters' confront the doubt internalised by generations of musical people via voluptuous harmonies, and 'Bored of Borders', 'Pay For Your Winnings', and 'Motherland' hit harder to confront the social fractures brought about by isolationism, racism, and immigration. The light/shadow dynamics demonstrate the diversity throughout the album and a challenging listen that pleasantly reveals its multi-layered narrative after numerous plays.
Concrete Disco presents a plethora of influences. A standout track during their UK tour with The Orb was "Running", which uses the riff from the traditional Chinese instrument, the liuqin, to underscore the connection between Jonny's Chinese heritage in Hong Kong with modern electronic grooves. A tribute to Jonny's son, "Go Rockets" is charming and captures some of the warmth of their performance; meanwhile, "Gonna End In Tears" presents a meditative reflection on death with clarity and clear emotion. The two-part finale of "Chain Me Up" and "Rebirth" wraps up the album in an ecstatic fusion of techniques from indie-pop to high stock club bangers to close the album with an acceptance of oneself.
Using incredible production quality and genre-defying creativity, Concrete Disco doesn't solely represent an electronic act; they are sonic storytellers. After wowing audiences at Glastonbury, Secret Garden Party, and The Roundhouse, as well as supporting legends such as Deadmau5 and Beardyman, Concrete Disco has produced an album that is as bold as it is classic, and firmly establishes them as one of the UK's most interesting acts.
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