Yacht’s 'Shangri-La' is a mid-tempo dance album that wants to be the feel good (although dystopic) hit of the summer. Unfortunately for Yacht, their last endeavour 'See Mystery Lights' already conquered this territory. A unique summer dance album, it was constructed from strange synthesizer sounds, shout along choruses, and skittery drums.
The spectral vocals, cowbell, and tambourine of 'Summer Song' from that album worked to create a late night jam that sounded good at after hour clubs and festivals alike. The willfully silly 'Psychic City,' comprised of multi-tracked vocals, water drop sound effects, guitar fueled choruses, and all-inclusive lyrics (see "hang around baby, hang around baby, we’ll be baking a cake for you"), was perfectly balanced between strange and irrisistably catchy. 'Shangri-La' lacks any break out tracks like the two previously mentioned. It tries to mine similar territory but falls flat, lacking the crucial builds, breaks, and buoyancy characteristic of great dance music and the band's previous work.
Yacht’s newest album begins with 'Utopia', a hi-hat driven chant along that borrows liberally from disco and seventies funk filtered through increased rpms. At just over three minutes long the song would normally be an excellent lead, but the following forty minutes of similar music will cause you to forget it by the album's end.
Second song, and first single, 'Dystopia The Earth is On Fire' gets by on the easily penned but not less affecting lyric "The Earth is on fire / we don’t need no water / let the mother fucker burn." It's not a bad sentiment for a dance song, and listeners will certainly find themselves chanting along, but it lacks any variation for its four minute duration.
There is a certain equilibrium to the album that rarely changes. The following five or six tracks easily blur together as mid-tempo dance songs with sing-speak vocals and the occasional squiggle of odd electronics noise and pseudo lazar sounds. 'One Step' makes interesting moves when it abruptly winds down mid-tune but the moment is quickly obfuscated by the rest of the song’s lack of distinction.
The most striking characteristic of this album is that despite moments of variated percussion, and instrumentation, each song seems locked in a similar stasis. 'Holy Roller' has some break out moments of heavier synthesized horns, but these moments manage to exist on the same auditory register as the rest of the song’s minimal voice and drums.
Only closer, 'Shangri-La,' seems to reach for true pop song status, embracing intriguing electronics and the sort of goofiness that Yacht has employed in the past. There is a certain pleasant vapidness in the lyric "If I can’t go to heaven / let me go to L.A... If we build a Utopia / will you come and stay?," and the song's instrumental chug, flirtation with strings, and light melody make it an album standout. This final song is relaxed, clever and seamless.
'Shangri-La' is still a good album in its own right, but it lacks the charisma to define your summer dance party. Rating: 6/10
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