Album review: Lo-Fi-FNK - Boylife

My “male electro-duo guide” went a bit tits up due to my laziness, but I was to feature Lo-Fi-FNK next. Their debut album, “Boylife”, which was released here in Sweden a few days ago, is up there with “Halcyon Days” and “Silent Shout” in brilliance. Which was a huge surprise since Lo-Fi-FNK’s earlier EP’s has been pretty average.

What surprised be even more was how personal the album is, many of the songs feel like they’re written directly to me. ‘City’ is about being a city boy and not feeling “home” on the country, ‘Steppin’ Out’ really hit a nerve since I’m a teen malchik gay in the closet, ‘System’ is about not learning from mistakes, and ‘What’s On Your Mind?’ about feeling generally down. And what’s the most amazing about this album is that the boys’ often are singing to someone, and not about themselves. This is one of the most empathic albums I’ve ever heard.

Steppin’ Out – This is Lo-Fi-FNK’s current single, and it’s a true masterpiece. And I’m not just talking about the lyrics, which are about coming out of the closet, but the melody is fantastic. I’m expecting to see this song on a few more than my top 2006 singles list. It’s also been remixed by the ace electro-group Hot Chip from the UK.

Wake Up – Probably the catchiest song on the album. This was actually released as a single by Lo-Fi-FNK earlier this year, but criminally didn’t even reach the top 60. There is an ace remix by Jens Andersson and Ola Salo (out of The Ark) floating around, but I lost the mp3 of it so I couldn’t upload it. It's better than this version so try to find it!

What’s On Your Mind? – “Tell me the last time that you cried, and the last time that you smiled, it must be something going on inside”. Lovely.

I haven’t felt like this for an album since Darren Hayes’ “The Tension And The Spark” back in 2004. It’s great from start to finish! Purchase it here. You won’t be disappointed.

PS1: Sorry for the serious lack of updates. I've just installed wireless internet and it's not working properly, and most of the time not working at all. Hopefully it'll be fixed soon.

PS2: Vote Carola tonight!

posted by Chrille @ 5/20/2006