Some people may shy away from music described as “’80s dance-pop”, myself being one of them, so I was a bit hesitant when purchasing Cut Copy’s new album Zonoscope. There was no need for any skepticism, though, because Cut Copy proved that dance-pop has the ability to sound good.
Zonoscope is Cut Copy’s third studio album and the perfect soundtrack for summer. And while it is not yet the summer season here in the U.S, Zonoscope can temporarily make you forget we had a snow day not too long ago. With its airy tunes and dance floor grooves, there is never a dull moment on the album.
The album kicks off with the six minute long “Need You Now”, a twinkling track building in momentum as the seconds pass and doesn’t slow down until the very end. The second track, “Take Me Over”, which is the first single to be released from the album, is an exuberant song that mixes tropical drums with funky guitars and is one of the more “poppy” songs from the album.
One of the things making Cut Copy a great band is its consistency and ability to mix different genres of music. They are able to take indie rock, blend it perfectly with pop and have the end product sound amazing.
A perfect example is the fourth track, “Pharaohs and Pyramids”. The lilting vocals of singer Dan Whitford combined with jumpy synths and house anthem beats make for an outstanding track, but one of the true gems is the fifth song, “Blink and You’ll Miss a Revolution”.
Most times, I prefer to listen to an album the whole way through on the first listen, but I was powerless to this song’s spacey melodies and wound up leaving it on repeat. “Blink…Revolution” is a favorite of mine and just as good as any of the three singles that have already been released from the CD.
The remaining tracks on the 11-song album move into a pop-rock feel. It is still full of electronic vibes, but not in so much that it drowns out the guitar. The eighth track, “Alisa”, is full of whining guitars and feels like an ‘80s love song when Whitford croons the song’s namesake over and over again in the chorus.
Zonoscope ends just as epically as it began with the 15 minute-long “Sun God”. It is hard to stay focused on one song for 15 minutes, but each part of the song is different and combines all the different elements of the previous songs on the album.
This album features Cut Copy evolving into less of a rock group and more of a dance group. And honestly, I’m completely OK with that. On the band’s two previous albums, Bright Like Neon Love and In Ghost Colours, Cut Copy dabbled in the dance genre and was able to make good music. With Zonoscope, it didn’t hold back with the dance grooves and created an album that can stand tall as a follow up to its previous albums.
