Album Review: The John Steel Singers – Midnight At The Plutonium (2016 LP)

During my first listen of The John Steel Singers’ new EP, Midnight at the Plutonium, it’s a cold Melbourne winter day, but damn, this album makes it feel like a Brisbane summer afternoon. At just eight tracks, it’s short and sweet, and the funk that seeps through has a good chance of getting you bopping around, yearning for beer and summer. The album is punctuated with serene interludes, ignoring standard song structures, undulating between honey-coated vocal harmonies and clever riffs. In case they hadn’t captured the quintessence of the band enough, the album draws its name from their recording studio in Brisbane’s Kelvin Grove.

Midnight at the Plutonium opens with its title track, a teasing, slow-build sort of intro, falls into a funky, perfectly-riffed track and silky, falsetto harmonies. The catchy chorus has definite 80s influence, and the instruments all work in a chattering sort of cohesion, that’s just so The John Steel Singers. Also in the first half of the album is “Weekend Lover”, which might just be the complete package; the melodies are telling of the pleasure of summer loves, the witty lyrics talking through the discomforts; complete with a sax solo and jilted synth outro.

The album is punctuated with the epic eight minute “Can You Feel The Future”, originally coined as a guitar loop six years ago. It’s now evolved to the best song the band has ever put to tape, in the words of guitarist Tim Morrissey. The new sound of the band that’s heard across the album here culminates, a dynamic soundscape with a ridiculously funky bass line, and some jazzy moments. The serene, nearly motion-picture-soundtrack-esque finish provides an intermission, leading into “Blue Parade”, dreamy and synth-heavy.

“The R Train” is one of the underrated highlights of the album; ultimate unflustered indie rock. An 80’s vibe drives the song, paired with another sweet falsetto chorus – I know what I’ll have on repeat in summer. The penultimate track evokes 4am in Brisbane (‘Let’s walk the Story [Bridge] home from here’), creating a brooding pre-dawn air before the logical final track, “Dawn of the Plutonium”.

Review Score: 9 out of 10. AU-APPROVED

Midnight at the Plutonium is undeniably funky, evokes the magic and sorrows between midnight and dawn, and is the best thing The John Steel Singers have released to date. Catch the guys for one of their fantastic live shows coming up:

August 25th | Transit Bar, CANBERRA
August 26th | Newtown Social Club, SYDNEY
August 27th | Northcote Social Club, MELBOURNE
September 2nd | Jive, ADELAIDE
September 3rd | Amplifier, PERTH

 

 

 

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