Review of Duologue's debut LP, 'Song & Dance'

There are some artists and bands out there who are ruined by adopting the mentality ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ far too literally for far too long. There are some bands out there who are too ‘artistic’ to be ‘pinned down’ by labels and consequently make it their mission to dabble in every genre going, thus alienating their already somewhat perplexed fans. Then there are the artists and bands who get the balance just right and, if you’re lucky, create their own ‘sound’ in the process. Judging by their debut LP,Song & Dance (which you can buy here), Duologue is one of those bands.

The strength in depth, the sculpted eccentricity, of this record is simply staggering. You could say this is solely represented by Zeros – how often does one come across a combination of guitars that are rocked as hard as the drums, piano that is played as elegantly as the accompanying strings and dubstep, let alone one that actually works? – but the rest of the album simply wouldn’t allow for it. For example, whilst Sinner and Snap Out Of It have the gutsy aggression of a band just coming into their own (the latter is reminiscent of Muse’s Plug In Baby days, with the most adequate way to describe the former being the kind of song the forces of Good and Evil would fiercely battle to), Underworld, with its relaxed beats and soft chimes, reveals the other half of Duologue in a way that is a little more subtle than the crash-bang dubstep evident on Cut and Run.

Rather oxymoronically, it’s to the epic Push It, clocking in at more than ten minutes, that one can find instances of the five piece’s intricacy and tenderness. Rather than forever trying to impress with how much noise their guitar strings and Korg machines can make, and thus place themselves in the dangerously repetitive ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ category, Push It, and the LP as a whole, is diced up when the band illustrate what kind of noise their tools can make, as well as how little. Just as the band show how they can do dark and ominous synth as well as they can plucky math rock on just a couple of the many sections of their recent single, such blood, sweat and tears have evidently been dedicated to the likes of the heartfelt Escape Artist and the soft Constant in the hope to maintain the high attention to detail and complexity omnipresent throughout the album.

It is their ability to compose a not-so-subtle rock anthem that’s as good as a more subtle detailed electronica beat, to embrace two hugely contrasting genres in such an innovative way, that creates their very own sound and consequently makes both the band, and their debut LP, so exciting.

Duologue's #DreamSofar

Foals. Everything Everything. Alt-J. All three are especially highly regarded and deservedly so; the first two have been nominated for the Mercury Prize (2010 and 2011 respectively), whilst the latter won the esteemed award last year. The correlation? Each have sculpted their own distinct sound.

Probably best Duologue’s highly anticipated debut LP, Song & Dance (which you can stream here and inevitably pre-order here, with a review from us to come on Monday) is shortlisted, then. At the very least.

You wouldn’t, for example, often associate the sweet tunes of acoustic with the aggressive wub-wub of dubstep, and yet front man Tim Digby-Bell tells no word of a lie saying “You could pick some songs and we’d be likened to a folk act, another few and we’d be called dubstep”. Considered by many to be the antithesis of each other, taken on their own both folk and dubstep have their merits. Stitched together, though, and as seamlessly as the London five-piece do? New innovative territory is breached, with the result being what can only be described as the sound of Duologue.

Of course it is not just us at Sofar who think this way. The people at both Clash and Q, who, it is safe to say, probably know a thing or two, also agree that Duologue are not merely content with taking today’s music for what it’s worth, but are instead stretching it in every which way in order to overcome and create new boundaries; the former describes their material as ‘songcraft borrowed from the indie sphere with glitchy, forward-thinking electronica’, the latter deeming the outfit ‘a rock band effortlessly in tune with electronica’.

The absolutely ram packed album launch the band played at Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen last week proved two things. First, their ‘effortless forward-thinking’ is gaining them a fan or two, some perhaps a little more notable than others (Jim Abbiss, who helped produce their debut, has also worked with a real up and coming female singer-songwriter, Adele, and little know Sheffield-based indie-rock outfit,Arctic Monkeys), and second, their live show is just as dynamic as the music it’s built around; making use of vocal manipulation, a drum machine, a projector and the suchlike, their stage presence is a real master class of all that is good in today’s technology and is consequently as much of a spectacle for the eyes than it is for the ears.

Fortunately, Duologue are soon embarking on a tour around the country with fellow electronicistas, Post War Years. Even better, entrance is absolutely free. The likes of Stephen Hawking and Dr. Emmett Brown are nothing less than complicated and confusing when it comes to the future of the world. Be sure to check out the track-by-track guide of Song & Dance written by Digby-Bell, and the band’s #DreamSofar below for, quite literally, the future of music.

Duologue’s #DreamSofar would be:

Nick Drake (Toby Leeming, live programming and beats):

‘Of all the artists I have listened to and read about, it seems Nick Drake suffered from stage fright the most – something we can all empathise with. I think if he were to ever enjoy a gig it would be in the 'Sofar' vibe and to hear him play his songs live at close quarters would be amazing.’

Tom Waits (Tim Digby-Bell, vocals):

‘He's one of my all-time favourite artists. I think Alice may be one of my favourite songs ever; I've been listening to it regularly for years and just not bored of it at all. It has the most beautiful words – it sounds like a Bukowski poem.’

The Rosenberg Trio (Toby Lee, guitars):

‘My dream Sofar gig would have to include Stochelo Rosenberg, a gypsy jazz acrobat performing proper acoustic music with virtuosity, flair and, most importantly, balls!’

Grateful Dead (Ross Stone, bass):

‘Had Sofar existed in 60s California, I'm positive it would have played host to the masters of tripped out, genre defying improvisation. Cram me into an incense filled living room for hours of heady, hypnotic jams. Peace.’

Rodriguez (Seb Dilleyston, violin):

‘I feel lucky to have found Rodriguez's music this last year. His music is sincere and beautiful, his voice unmistakable. It's as if you can feel the journey this man has been on. In an intimate setting, just Rodriguez and guitar: perfect.’