Logo
DiS Needs You: Save our site »
  • Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alternative must sees 6 months ago
  • A Different Kind Of Weird: dEUS on The Ideal Crash 6 months ago
  • Way Out East: DiS Does Sharpe Festival 2019 7 months ago
  • 25 years of SPOT Festival: DiS Picks Its Best 11 7 months ago
  • Twelve Hours Of Drone Is Just The Beginning: DiS Does Big Ears 8 months ago
  • IDLES Smash It In Sheffield 8 months ago
  • More bands announced for DiS partnered Fuzz Club Eindhoven 8 months ago
  • The Shape Of Punk To Come?: DiS Meets Crows 8 months ago
  • Logo_home2
  • Records
  • In Depth
  • In Photos
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Search
  • Community
  • Records
  • In Depth
  • Blog
  • Community

Funeral Party

The Golden Age of Knowhere

Label: Jive Records Release Date: 24/01/2011

66248
romanisbetter by Robert Cooke January 25th, 2011

A modest buzz surrounded Funeral Party during the summer, when they were hailed by some as heirs to The Rapture. The track which whet those appetites – ‘New York City Moves to the Sound of LA’ – sounded like a mission statement. It framed itself as the manifesto for a new generation of Californian indie disco hipsters, who are fed up of having their moves stolen by the NYC garage rockers.

The track’s job description remains the same half a year later, as it opens the band’s debut album, Golden Age Of Knowhere. The verse’s angular riff is still sure to get knees twisting and hips jutting as the band cry with the self-assurance of James Murphy, “New York City loves to mess around with the LA sound”. The punk-spirited chorus has an arty sneer, but it’s one that’s muffled by a fun self-awareness. Though there’s a lot in the track that’s recycled, it still sounds enthrallingly on trend, and that’s all to do with the confidence and energy with which Funeral Party play it. They sound like they’re simply doing what they want, even if technically they’re fairly referential, and that counts for something, and makes it all a lot more fun.

This ambivalence means they can get away with some real disco cheese on ‘Car Wars’. The bass bounces unashamedly, under attack from epileptic percussion and Seventies wah-guitar that would make Stevie Wonder wince. It’s a little dumb, but it fits into the ‘who cares?’ party narrative that Golden Age Of Knowhere has begun to construct.

The problems start when Funeral Party try to sound more sincere. Only ‘Just Because’ really works as a more contemplative track. Misleadingly, the opening lyrics are wailed loosely as the guitar tries to paste together a chord pattern, before giving up and making for a punky synth ballad that sprints at double speed. Here, the band use timeless techniques to pack a song with feeling, but build in sheer pace and vocalist Chad Elliott’s hyperactive energy.

On the other more emotional tracks that dominate Golden Age Of Knowhere, Funeral Party make the mistake of slowing down their performance. This loss of momentum forces them to decelerate into generic sounds and, too often, MOR. On a track like ‘City In Silhouettes’, Funeral Party sound like they’ve extinguished their radical fire because they feel as though they should play with ‘meaning’.

There are times when the embers of ‘New York City…’ look as though they might reignite. The tribal vocals and percussion on ‘Giant Song’ suggest that Funeral Party are keen to try something a little more experimental, but a bland chord pattern gets in the way of capitalising on this idea. Later, the bluesy electric piano on ‘Relics To Ruins’ could give Funeral Party the emotional depth they seem to crave, but they don’t trust it with enough space and turn the track into another pop song that’s desperate for a proper hook.

The thing that made Funeral Party exciting in the first place – that their sole function seemed to be to get people dancing – gets sidelined on Golden Age Of Knowhere. The album is largely stuck analysing lost feelings and past regrets, when it would have been much more entertaining if it focussed on living for the moment. The rhythm intrinsic to the band’s sound is enough to make them a danceable live act, but they’ll only ever be a one night stand. Golden Age Of Knowhere is not an album that it’s possible to have a more meaningful relationship with.

  • 5
    Robert Cooke's Score
Log-in to rate this record out of 10
Share on
   
Love DiS? Become a Patron of the site here »


LATEST


  • Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alternative must sees


  • A Different Kind Of Weird: dEUS on The Ideal Crash


  • Way Out East: DiS Does Sharpe Festival 2019


  • 25 years of SPOT Festival: DiS Picks Its Best 11


  • Twelve Hours Of Drone Is Just The Beginning: DiS Does Big Ears


  • IDLES Smash It In Sheffield



Left-arrow

Cloud Nothings

Cloud Nothings

Mobback
66246
66249

Disappears

Guider

Mobforward
Right-arrow


LATEST

    Festival Preview


    Glastonbury 2019 preview playlist + ten alterna...

  • 106137
  • Interview


    A Different Kind Of Weird: dEUS on The Ideal Crash

  • 106136

    Festival Review


    Way Out East: DiS Does Sharpe Festival 2019

  • 106135
  • Festival Review


    25 years of SPOT Festival: DiS Picks Its Best 11

  • 106134

    Festival Review


    Twelve Hours Of Drone Is Just The Beginning: Di...

  • 106133
  • Live Review


    IDLES Smash It In Sheffield

  • 106132

    Festival Preview


    More bands announced for DiS partnered Fuzz Clu...

  • 106131
  • Interview


    The Shape Of Punk To Come?: DiS Meets Crows

  • 106123
MORE


    feature


    DiS meets Justice

  • 27270
  • feature


    Panic Prevention: At the drink with Jamie T

  • 14183

    feature


    The Knife: Swedish purveyors of alien synergy

  • 27337
  • Column


    DiS Does Singles 22.04.13: Daft Punk, Savages, ...

  • 89944

    DiScover


    ReDiScover: Low

  • 12734
  • In Depth


    Lou Reed: An Eu-lulu-ogy

  • 93330

    DiScussion


    Emo? Twee? In unnecessary defence of Neutral Mi...

  • 93713
  • Interview


    Ace of Bass: DiS Meets Royal Blood

  • 97097
MORE

Drowned in Sound
  • DROWNED IN SOUND
  • HOME
  • SITE MAP
  • NEWS
  • IN DEPTH
  • IN PHOTOS
  • RECORDS
  • RECOMMENDED RECORDS
  • ALBUMS OF THE YEAR
  • FESTIVAL COVERAGE
  • COMMUNITY
  • MUSIC FORUM
  • SOCIAL BOARD
  • REPORT ERRORS
  • CONTACT US
  • JOIN OUR MAILING LIST
  • FOLLOW DiS
  • GOOGLE+
  • FACEBOOK
  • TWITTER
  • SHUFFLER
  • TUMBLR
  • YOUTUBE
  • RSS FEED
  • RSS EMAIL SUBSCRIBE
  • MISC
  • TERM OF USE
  • PRIVACY
  • ADVERTISING
  • OUR WIKIPEDIA
© 2000-2019 DROWNED IN SOUND