The Strange and the Familiar continues LA-based Fonda's evolution from a trippy sixties-style girlpop outfit to Lush, Mk.II. This isn't necessarily a bad thing; Lush never really made a go of it themselves, so somebody else should be able to enjoy the success they could have had.
Why can Fonda succeed where others failed? Because they have a bit more backbone than the competition, that's why. Yes, Fonda writes songs about sunshine and summer and love and dancing, but there's a mature hand at the till ready to dish up some feedback-soaked minor-key guitar interplay whenever things threaten to get too sappy. I've heard that twee-pop fans often find Fonda too forceful for their tastes, and that's fine with me. There's something thoroughly comforting in the knowledge that Fonda aren't a bunch of greasy-haired kids in too-tight ringer t-shirts and polyester pants. This is a mature band with some real world experience behind them.
The Lush comparison is a generalization, of course. It's easy to make generalizations about Fonda's sound, but when you actually sit down and listen to The Strange and the Familiar it quickly becomes obvious that broad statements don't hold up to scrutiny. Yes, you can drop Fonda into broad-rimmed buckets like "sixties pop", but "Summer Land (Be My Love)" knocks aside assertions about "ever-present feedback", and "People and Stars" puts paid to any claims regarding "pervasive female vocals". There's a healthy variety of moods and tempos here, without any gratuitous genre- or subgenre-hopping, so it's clear that Fonda has figured out the difference between "cohesive" and "thirteen variations on the same song".
That said, few songs on The Strange and the Familiar pack the wallop of "classic" Fonda tunes like "Theme from 'The Operatives'". However, "The Lessons to Unlearn" offers a valiantly strident piece of psychedelic shoegazing, frothing with lovely feedback and supported by a pleasantly retro acoustic guitar line. Likewise, "Dance in the Light" holds a muscular approach behind its proto-4AD title, minus most of "Lessons"' drone. But in general, The Strange and the Familiar is the province of Fonda's mid-tempo songs. These may take a little more listening to win you over, but they'll get you in the end. "I Can Take Your Troubles Away" is a coyly charming confection, and "Cape May"'s measured acoustic melody, male-female vocals and drum-machine beat tear a page from the Mascott songbook. And "Summer Land", reviewed here in single form a couple of weeks ago, even has the right sort of tone to find its way into a few indie-rock weddings in the months to come.
Since I was initially drawn to Fonda by their more robust, psychedelic-leaning, farfisa-assisted, electric-guitar-intensive songs, I'm sure I'm not alone in hoping that they don't abandon that aspect of their music. A few of The Strange and the Familiar's gentler sequences left me missing it.
So let's review: The Strange and the Familiar is mellower but more assured, diverse but recognizable, and summery without being a dripping wet load of twee bollocks. It's not a striking record, and perhaps not as immediate as their debut, The Invisible Girl, but it satisfies. Oh, and it sounds a bit like Lush here and there. All good things, in my opinion.
|
