M83: Junk
Lacking M83’s usual energy and creative spark.
M83 are walking a very fine line.
Album to album they’ve moved closer to ’80s shtick and with Junk, it seems they may have taken a step too far. Despite a couple of tracks that wouldn’t feel out of place on 2011’s Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming, most of the new material sounds like a soundtrack to a parody John Hughes film.
Highlights ‘Go!’ and ‘Solitude’ do stand out as propulsive, modern re-interpretations of early synth pop, but it’s steadily downhill from there. And not in a very good way.
Lacking the usual energy and creative spark you’d come to expect from M83, Junk honestly feels rushed and aptly, considering the album title, it’s just a bit of a mess.
This review was originally published in Fashion Journal issue 157. You can read the full issue here.
