Customer Reviews

Apocalypso

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Presets- clever, fresh, fun, danceable, smart music with some good edges you can wrap your ears around. If you liked their first album, you'll probably like this one too- I actually find this one has more listenable tracks. But it's darker, you might call it gothic synth-pop. Which is cool, it's in a genre all it's own. All my friends dig it and say "where do you find all these cool tunes?" But my friends are kind of douchebags so forget about them. Anyway, this is a rockin album. Check it out.

Australian duo The Presets return to the scene with their 2008 sophomore record, Apocalypso. The album features a very strong dance vibe with industrial and pop undertones.

If you don't know The Presets, here is your introduction. Julian Hamilton is one half, and the side we would know as the voice. His singing is monotonous and can almost at times be described as yelling in key. Along with Kim Moyes, who is in charge with percussion, they both provide the keyboards and synths. It's a complete dual effort, as the songs would lack something if either the beats or words were gone from their compositions. Hamilton and Moyes are prevalent in the Australian electronic scene, and partially in the rock scene as well. They are good friends with Silverchair frontman Daniel Johns, as well as his Dissociatives counterpart and producer Paul Mac. They have remixed fellow Australians Cagedbaby and Architecture in Helsinki, been remixed by Cut Copy, and share a label with Wolfmother and The Avalanches. Their first album, Beams, met with mixed reviews, but when it shined, it shined brightly. "Are You The One?", the second single off the album, was featured in one of the final episodes in season 3 of So You Think You Can Dance.

Which brings us to Apocalypso. The album finds The Presets picking up on the vibe that worked, something that was mostly developed while touring based on live performances. The lead single, "My People," is an extremely heavy, fast-paced, and dark electronic pop song, and also a cry for social reformation in Australia. "Let me hear you scream if you're with me!" Hamilton yells, like the man with the megaphone. "Talk Like That" seems custom-tailored for the dance floor, complete with sexual connotations and classical breakdowns. Hamilton and Moyes make sure to let us know when to expect a big drop into some heavy beats as the instruments climb the scales, and the tension rises. Just when you think it can't go on any longer, right on the beat we hear, in almost a coy fashion, "Uh oh!" to let us know it's time to dance. "This Boy's In Love" is the album's second single and is one of the softer notes available on Apocalypso, but don't be fooled by that description. It's still a very danceable number. Every time I begin to listen to "Kicking and Screaming," the opening song, I think, "Wow, I really don't like this song." Then the chorus begins, and I'm reminded of just why I love The Presets. "Aeons" is, in my opinion, the only downer on the album. Earlier I had mentioned that without both members contributing their individual strengths, Hamilton with his voice and Moyes with his beats, The Presets lost their edge. "Aeons" is an instrumental track, and thus feels like it is missing something.

You'll typically find The Presets in the rock section at your local CD retailer. This is incorrect, as The Presets are very far from rock. Hamilton's voice and the dark tone of the music threatens to drag their music into industrial territory, but the production from Moyes and the general song structure supply club and pop elements, giving us a very twisted form of electro pop. This album borders on being a non-stop party album, and the most disrespect it can be shown is to be lumped into "Pop/Rock." It belongs in Electronica, and maybe people will wise up to how much talent and potential these two men have.

Summary: Buy it. Some find Hamilton's voice a little grating, but I find it a refreshing change from the screaming diva and breathy vixen that dominate the dance floor. "Talk Like That," even with an extended mix, could rock the floor.

2 tracks stand out like beacons on this great release: "This Boy's In Love" and the 1st single "If I Know You" - both feature minor synth lines and haunting melodies that you will be left humming for a good long time. If NEW ORDER actually had IAN CURTIS as their lead singer in their synth-pop phase it may have sounded like "Apocalypso!" Imagine perfect arrangements of sad-sounding dance-pop but with a more over-blown and chilling lead vocalist. This modern production is a must own for fans of PET SHOP BOYS, THE FAINT, DE/VISION, CROC SHOP and LADYTRON alike. The 2 videos for the tracks mentioned earlier are real winners too; dark, gritty and hip. Just like this Austrialian Duo!

I heard this band for the first time last Nov. when I took a trip to Sydney. The sound is kind of brash and very eclectic. I enjoy the punk/80s synth band aesthetic of this duo. Definitely give the album a preview before ordering, it's not for everybody. If you're willing to venture into nouveau retro territory, your exploration will be rewarded. This is a dynamic album that may challenge you. Enjoy!

This isn't a style of music I normally listen to. However, I do love to hear clever use of synthesizers and groovy tunes, and in that respect Apocalypso certainly delivers.

Nothing on Apocalypso stands out as sounding truly original, yet the number of influences I can discern makes it impossible to accuse The Presets of copying anyone in particular. The influences I hear are mostly circa 1980's New Wave bands, but with much higher production value. At times I hear Gary Numan, Tears For Fears, Simple Minds, and perhaps even U2 on one occasion, followed by various techno and dance influences from the 1990's. "Yippiyo-Ay" even has the slightest hint of Price's patented 'Minneapolis Sound' from the mid-80's, if you listen closely.

To be honest, I'm not fond of this style of singing, which I would describe as being relatively unemotional, yet having strong projection. The end result of this kind of singing is that the vocals retain a hint of the singer's speaking accent. Truly emotional singing tends to obliterate various British and Australian accents (e.g., you can't tell the Beatles have a thick Liverpool accent when they sing). Not that the accent is a bad thing; its presence just indicates a lack of emotion, for reasons that only linguists probably know. But then again, this isn't meant to be a rock opera; it's just good music to dance to!

I should note that these songs offer a lot more than the sound samples at Amazon would lead you to believe. These songs change up and break down frequently, and aren't nearly as monotonous as the brief sound samples imply. There's a lot of great stuff here that you're missing if you go by the samples alone. One reviewer noted that tracks 4, 5 and 6 are basically founded on the same beat, and they are correct. However, when you hear the entire songs in context, you really don't notice, and it probably helps to tie the album together as a whole.

As it turns out, my favorite songs are precisely the ones I liked best from the sound samples: "My People", "Eucalyptus", and "Together". Yet there aren't any songs I would remove from my playlist; they're all quite enjoyable.

To summarize, I think Apocalypso has strong appeal for New Wave and Dance music fans, but it probably has a little less appeal for strictly techno fans who expect more complex sequencing. And if you're looking for profound lyrics that make you THINK, this ain't it. What it is, is great "background" music to keep you rocking to the beat in your seat at work, or while cleaning the house, or to attract wallflowers to the dance floor at a party. But if you're looking for depth, complexity, originality, or musical virtuosity, Apocalypso isn't what you're looking for.

The Presets won 3 Aria's last night in the following categories:
1. ALBUM OF THE YEAR
2. BEST GROUP
3. BEST DANCE RELEASE

Read more @ http://www.ariaawards.com.au/news.php but if you didn't see the show you missed out on their amazing live act. I want a headdress like the drummer's for halloween!!!! This group is really popular with young Australians - My People!

The Presets sophomore effort, Apocalypso, does not disappoint in the slightest!

The formula is the same, the content is as high fueled as "Beams" if not more! I feel it to be a much more consistent and well rounded album than "Beams" Of course there were hits off that record that are hard to surpass, but this album delivers a whole slough of new work that is sure to get the bodies moving. They deliver great tracks, and it the album never lags. Hard solid beats and crazy aussie vocals laced with sythy presets. How can you go wrong?

& see them live.

loved Beams, was very excited to get this. 'If I Know You' is a very lovely song, but the rest of it is pretty forgettable, and tracks 3, 4, and 5 work the same exact riff...huh? The lead singer's overwrought bombast seems like a weak Depeche Mode ripoff ('Talk Like That'), and his yodelly yawp gets tired. It works great on 'If I know You', very passionate, but not so much anywhere else. Where Beams was incredibly diverse , and full of hooks, this is fully of lazy synth lines, generic drum machine plonk, and little else. oh well.

I was shown a Presets YouTube video (Down Down Down) and instantly loved them. The first album was good, but Apocalypso is off the charts. I really needed a dose of good old fashioned kick-butt dance music, and they brought it. This boy's in love!

First of all, I have read some reviews that this album has some sort of a Goth vibe and I strongly disagree. This is definitly new wave-electroclash music...rather, electro-kitsch. Most of the songs have a basic pop structure, and the lyrics are fairly pointless and silly. However, despite my complaints, there are two good songs on this album, "This Boy's In Love", "My People"...or whatever ( I don't have the CD in my hand at the moment) that make the album somewhat of a buy. I wouldn't give these guys anything more than three stars....it's just ok in my book.