I really enjoyed The Reunion Show, but when Action Action first surfaced I was left a little disappointed. A ‘super’ group made up of former Count The Stars and TRS members, Action Action are so heavily steeped in dark 80s synth bands it’s untrue. And while their Victory debut hit the spot at times, it was horrificaly inconsistent. This new record is much, much better and sees the band finally grab their own identity. If The Killers and The Bravery have made 2005 the year of the synth, throwing in Depeche Mode bits and even using Cyndi Lauper’s producer adds an even more authentic 80s vibe for Action Action, although whether or not they receive the same mainstream recognition remains to be seen.
‘An Army of Shapes Between Wars’ starts well. ‘Smoke And Mirrors’ and ‘Sleep Parlysis’ feature swirling keys and catchy choruses and while dark in tone are far more uplifting than a lot of the dreary tracks which littered ‘Don’t Cut Your Fabric To This Years Fashion’. While that record came across as boring all too often, this is a far more interesting proposition. The electronica interlude that runs into ‘The Game’ is a nice touch too, with Mark Thomas Kluepfel’s vocals far better all round on this release. ‘The Game’ is actually a really nice song, a bit of a curveball from what you may be expecting as there’s less synth.
I wouldn’t describe this as essential listening, but it’s a far better record than I thought it was going to be. I looked forward to the first record and my expectations were never met. As a result, my hopes for ‘An Army of Shapes Between Wars’ were a lot lower and subsequently I’ve been nicely surprised by how good this CD is. With synth and keyboard bands now tenapenny, this won’t appeal to everyone. It’s more The Bravery than Hellogoodbye, but if you’re a fan of either this is worth checking out.
www.action-action.com
Victory Records
Paul