Dynasty Electric – Burning EP
Dynasty Electric Records (4/29/09)
Rock / Electro / Psychedelic
Yet another electro-rock band has emerged from the streets of Brooklyn, with their messy hair and trend-setting apparel, as Dynasty Electric has just released their EP, Burning. Inspired by the duo’s (Jennifer DeVeau and Seth Misterka) experience at the last Burning Man festival, the band’s second release contains six bass-heavy, beat-catchy tracks that will quickly slip their way into your head, the college radio scene, the hands of DJs and probably a movie soundtrack or two before the summer is over.
Burning starts out strong with one of the stand-out tracks, “Closer to Contact”, with a groovy ’70s guitar, backed by the beat-heavy bass and drums (think Meg White). This track is undeniably one of the catchier, sure-to-be-everywhere-soon tracks. The video for “Closer to Contact” is derived from late-’60s B-movie Barbarella, involves flying naked men and spandex-clad women with unicorn horns—almost a sci-fi porn. Definitely worth checking out.
Dynasty Electric easily has a strong psychedelic vibe, with thick, thick bass lines that carry the beat, layered with the sultry vocals of Deveau. If Garbage ever decided to make an electro-rock album, this might be it, as Deveau is very much the American Shirley Manson. Each track wanes in and out of either being pure rock, or trying to find their pop edge. Some tracks (“Something Good”, “Megaphone” and “Move My Feet”) are tunes that were made to entice your body to move to the addictive beats concocted by DE, almost later-NIN-sounding techno.
Then there are tracks that will completely catch you off guard, like the title track, which begins with a saxophone intro, is reminiscent of a good ’80s pop song, but in a flash it’s gone and we’re back to the finger-heavy, funky bass. DE may be very in-touch with concrete sound of bass and drums, contrasting the light whispery vocals. The lyrics, on the other hand, seem to be lacking any real substance: “Ooh I got a feeling I can stir you up / And I got a feeling that you’ll drink my cup / I can fill you up with all my love”. It never feels as if a story is being told, or the lyrics are putting a picture in your head that correlates with the music. It’s just very basic, but luckily this doesn’t seem to take away from the songs as much as it could have.
DE’s Burning, is a great EP, but the raw punk force that drove Black Box, DE’s first album, seems to have disappeared, leaving behind a darker sound, a bit of an excursion from the gritty, punk feel of the past. Overall, this could have turned out to be a complete mess, as could most electro albums, but DE pulls it together, keeping the rock where it should be and the clamor at bay. The band does a decent job of establishing themselves in the music scene with a unique sound that has a retro vibe, with a modern twist. For anyone that’s a fan of Garbage, Blondie, Goldfrapp or The Sounds, DE’s Burning is absolutely something to check out.
