You can’t get far in music without a synthesiser and a sequencer these days and Glasgow’s minimalist dance pop pranksters Free Love - Suzanne Rodden and Lewis Cook – prove that with their latest release “Luxury Hits” whilst adding more than a soupçon of style.
Thematically, the ghost in the machine gets thoroughly exorcised by these eight songs and, with a knowing wink towards the joys of arthouse pretension, this dynamic duo take all the best loops and moves and then slow them down into the kind of urban ballet that makes a cultural statement.
This isn’t soul music yet it is undeniable that, in amongst all those plastic beats, lurks a passion to create something that would touch the heart of those who might listen with, despite its stylistic minimalism and synthetic musicality, “Tomorrow Could Be Heaven” getting as close to outpouring emotion as our bleak times will allow.
Unsurprisingly, the ghost of the dancefloor haunts these songs but not in such a manner to suggest that this was the final intention and purpose of Free Love yet it would not take much imagination to see the power of the remix being applied to “Synchronicity” or “How Do You Feel”. However, if there is one song that should not be touched by the sweaty digits of the DJ, it would be “Playing As Punks”. Sublime in its simplicity, this song is as adorably retro as you can get without calling on the services of a timelord.
The past is, as always, the future and, with that in mind, Free Love must therefore be declared trendsetters in our plastic world.