The lyrics “In this moment, no one is pulling me down into the ground” give a jubilant jumpstart to the newest work from English singer/songwriter Fyfe Dangerfield- A line that perhaps is a premonitory statement for the feelings Fly Yellow Moon brings to its listener. The opening track “When You Walk Into The Room” offers a techno sounding intro, loose vocals, and tweaked guitars that are all laid over a bouncing piano rhythm, insuring you simply cannot help but smile and bob along.
Though Fly Yellow Moon is a debut for Fyfe playing under his own name, this Birmingham born musician is no stranger to the music world. As the founding member of the critically acclaimed Indie-rock band Guillemots, Dangerfield has already racked up a number of chart topping songs, awards, and television performances. Fortunately for Fyfe, Fly Yellow Moon has established the previously suspected fact that he not only makes a fantastic front-man, but also has the musical chops to play out on his own.
Fly Yellow Moon is a collection of ten tracks that dance in the footsteps of the 60’s/70’s folksy pop left behind by such bands as The Beatles and ELO, as well as carve out an entirely new path of their own. From the previously mentioned upbeat tempo of “What You Walk Into The Room”, with its slightly rough acoustics and yelps, to the more subdued piano pop of “Barricades”, Fyfe’s slight rasp ranges from Five For Fighting to Queen’s Freddy Mercury all while being able to slide into a pitch perfect falsetto when needed.
Dangerfield’s avant-garde approach to pop is none more apparent than in the slightly psychedelic, cymbal heavy and fuzzy sound of “Faster Than The Setting Sun”, but the musician is also able to keep things relatable and familiar with the sound of tracks like “SoBrand New” and “High on the Tide” which both give a hybrid of the indie/late 60’s ballad- essentially a stripped down version of what Fyfe has done in Guillemots. A big derivation from those few songs that all find themselves in the same camp on this album, is “She Needs Me” which jumps head first into a real disco-era kind of poppy happiness, complete with keys and stringy swells.
Though the first impression based on Fly Yellow Moon’s opening track is one that creates an expectation for the dance-y, production based, indie seen more and more often, this debut truly gives its listener an eclectic combination of twists and turns without seeming confused. All in all there’s an astute fluidity in these songs that is too well executed to simply have been stumbled upon- the simple aesthetic presented in Fly Yellow Moon is concisely calculated, and clearly crooned.
Fly Yellow Moon makes its U.S. appearance tomorrow, March 16th through Polydor Records. Visit fyfedangerfield.com or Fyfe’s iTunes page to get your copy.
Tags: Album Review, International, New Music, New Release
