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Goldfrapp:
Train (single)
Never judge a book by its cover, or is it a person by his looks...or...a single by its cover-art. I suppose Goldfrapp thinks it's clever to form a collage that consists of someone in bikini briefs along with two wolf heads on the cover of their new single Train; but maybe you can ignore that for a minute. If you look at the back of the single, you might see something a bit more welcome: the Mute record label. The independent Mute Records has been around almost as long as the synthesizer, and they have a darn good track record for signing interesting artists, even nowadays. Now look a bit closer...that's right, Mark Linkous (of Sparklehorse) a fellow Virginian is playing his casio on Train, which is a nice surprise. But wait! We weren't going to judge this release by its cover, were we? Well, why not judge it by the CD-ROM video included? This has singer/showboat, Alison Goldfrapp, rolling around on all fours with enough mascara to convince you that she's a Thundercat. This image alternates with a sort of burlesque performance from a slew of other selectively dressed women that seem to think Lil' Kim's outfits are a bit on the conservative side. Although the video flows remarkably well with the grinding tempo of the song, I would again suggest that you judge "Train" by its music. And maybe discount the lyrics a bit while you're at it. Some of the verses sound alright, but the chorus, "Can't step off of the train, Trayeeayeeain," will hardly win over the strictly intellectual music listener. So folks, what are we left with? Well you're left with "Train" emerging as a driving electro track without much deeper purpose to it beyond the sexy groove and discordant synthetic gurgles that make it easy to lump Goldfrapp's new sound into the black hole category of electroclash, a genre that apparently no longer exists. Without getting into all that, Goldfrapp pulls off their sound on this release with the sort of fresh psychoticism that contemporaries like Adult. and predecessors like Fad Gadget have been known to utilize. The beats are dirtier than anything you'd find on a Totally 80's compilation, and the song just builds its freaky noises into a realm of complete bizarreness before it ends. Basically, I'd say this is a step in the right direction for Goldfrapp, since previous singles like "Human" sound a bit like mediocre Portishead. Actually, the B-side of Train, "Big Black Cloud, Little White Lie," gives you a perfect example of their old sound. Not bad, just uh...unnecessary perhaps? Fortunately, the remixes on Train are very good. As a fan of electronic music, I can't tell you how many times I've been pissed off by uncreative and boring remixes, so it's a nice surprise that the "Village Hall" and "T. Raumschmiere Vocal" mixes are good in their own right. The "Village Hall Mix" just kind of drags Train in and out of its fast pace, as a bit of a chance to catch your breath before piling on the sound again. Then, T. Raumschmiere pulls a bit of a 180 towards the end with a chord progression that reminds me of Goldenboy and Miss Kittin's 2002 gem "Rippin' Kittin." In conclusion, on first listen, Train might not seem too exciting, but after looking carefully, it fully achieves its purpose in the music world even if it is just a song for hot, sexy people to dance all hot and sexy to.
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