Review Summary: Whilst it could be written off as more of the same, False Priest is a concise refinement of Of Montreal's already exciting sound.
It seems odd that a man characterised by chameleonic stylistic shifts in his early days should now be so content as to try and write the same album three times running. What we first thought were the fidgety jumps of a restless mind may have been trial-and-error attempts to find the right formula. This was most certainly found with 2007’s
Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? Like a camped-up Low (not that Bowie ever needed help in this regard), it was a perfect blend of hedonism and emotional fragility.
But since, the erstwhile-inventive Kevin Barnes, the creative force behind of Montreal, has stagnated. 2008’s
Skeletal Lamping was him at his most indulgent, generously exploring the sexually-twisted mind of his alter-ego Georgie Fruit largely at the expense of direction. The good news is that
False Priest doesn’t meander like
Skeletal Lamping, but the bad news is that is doesn’t offer much in the way of innovation. Nor does the title of
False Priest herald a previously unvisited standoff between Barnes and religion. The focus remains the same, unashamedly on sex and relationships, which is all well and good, but a pity; it would have been intriguing to hear someone with Barnes’ lyrical prowess confront his religious demons.
However, to bemoan a lack of originality does a disservice to an album that otherwise barely puts a foot wrong. The production is the best we’ve heard yet on an of Montreal record, credited primarily to Jon Brion, with more of a concern for those danceable low-end frequencies. This results in some genuinely funky-as-*** moments, exemplified best in ‘Like a Tourist’, a bitch-slap of a song which sees Barnes do Prince better than Prince does these days. Those 8-bit, Sega Mega Drive-like sounds that typified
Hissing Fauna are replaced with natural tones, which otherwise might have come at a loss, but provides this new album with some of its best moments. The vocals have also come in for a sonic treatment and are wonderfully diverse, helped by the guest vocals of Solange Knowles and Janelle Monáe, the latter adding a particularly good performance on ‘Enemy Gene’. Though despite this tough competition, Barnes’ voice still steals the show, continuing to surprise with its range and versatility and is even auto-tuned to a magnificently smooth effect on ‘Hydra Fancies’.
Of the thirteen tracks here, a high percentage are killer, and they only get better as the tracks with more substance reveal themselves at the back end of the album. It all begins a little frivolously you see, with ‘I Feel Ya’ Strutter’ and ‘Our Riotous Defects’s bubblegum upbeats and throwaway lyrically gags which are probably only good for a few listens: “I did everything I could to make you happy / I participated in all your protests / supported your stupid little blog.” Things get good when single ‘Coquet Coquette’ is reached, constructed of several movements - a rock chug-a-long, a sexy bass-driven funk jam, and a space-rock synth finale - despite it being no longer than the average pop song. Who said Barnes was struggling for invention? Oh.
Even the seemingly tame ‘Sex Karma’, starring the aforementioned Knowles, is a very listenable R&B duet, despite some lacking and overly obvious imagery. The outro beat then invites ‘Girl Named Hello’ to bleed in seamlessly, another enjoyable funk number. In fact, nearly every track on here is shamelessly enjoyable, which is a rare thing. If you think of this record as a continuation or perhaps perfection of the
Hissing Fauna/Skeletal Lamping sound then there’s little fault to be found. Sure, Barnes could have pushed the boat out a little further but he makes up for it by creating the most succinct album he’s made so far. A lack of imagination is not the problem here; renovation not innovation was his goal. The result is an album that’s concise and utterly fun, and you can’t complain much about that.
Written for www.nightbus.tumblr.com
