AlunaGeorge deserve to be lauded as one of this year’s great singles bands solely on the strength of “Attracting Flies” and “White Noise”, their collaboration with electro outfit Disclosure. The London duo - featuring the purring vocals of Aluna Francis and George Reid’s sassy production - have been gaining attention in all the right places over the past 12 months, which gives their delayed debut a lot to live up to.
That the big, distorted hook and kiss-off chorus of "...Flies", so perfect in its subtlety, are the catchiest things on Body Music is a little misleading. It means that the first couple of listens are burdened with the wait for something similar to happen. Although Reid knows how to write a hook - try the album’s other earworm, “Just A Touch”, and the kaleidoscopic dubstep of “You Know You Like It” for further examples - his primary concern is not with pop music or mainstream R&B but with using distorted electronic effects and the sensual vocals of Francis to create something far more atmospheric - and just a little seedy.
That the singles are the strongest tracks on the album is either incredibly frustrating, given that the original version of “You Know You Like It” dates back to 2011; or testament to just how good those songs are. Elsewhere, “Kaleidoscope Love” shimmers around some particularly naff lyrics comparing a relationship to “chemical equations”, and Francis sounds sugar sweet against the grimier production and booming bass drum on “Diver”. But the sheer amount of technical manipulation, leading into what is actually a fairly conventional chorus, on “Lost and Found” will be divisive - even from one listen to the next - and despite the glitch-hop between-verses breakdown, “Best Be Believing” ultimately descends into something far more syrupy and generic with the addition of a gospel style chorus. But with the exception of the musically bland and lyrically awful “Superstar”, even at their weakest AlunaGeorge always sound genuinely keen to try something new - and at their best, they’re among the greatest at it.
Watch the new video for "You Know You Like It" below
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