[Review/Listen] – Django Django – “Django Django”

“Django Django” is an album of two halfs. The opening seven tracks are a mad art-pop romp, absolutely living up to the hype that surrounded Django Django on the release of their debut single “Storm/Love’s Dart” back in 2009. Come the last six tracks, though, Django Django seem to be completely out of ideas, reviving their first single and rehashing the same sounds with far less enthusiasm and imagination.

So let’s talk about that first half for a bit then. The first two tracks elide right into each other, or at least they’re supposed to [curse your lack of gapless playback, Spotify!], and together they set the tone for a bonkers journey. “Introduction” opens things up a little deceptively, but winds up capturing the bizarre nature of “Django Django” perfectly: the track morphs from a collection of clinical, soulless techno bleeps and bloops into a “Knights Of Cydonia” style cowboys and indians rock number, and that’s the sound that continues into track two, “Hail Bop”. Well, it is for a little bit anyway. “Hail Bop” is the first time we’re properly introduced to Django Django’s vocals, and they’re just as thrillingly variable as their instrumentation, fluctuating from Mamas And The Papas style harmonies on the first verse to an ever-thickening wall of “ahs” on the pre-chorus that merge with the backing synths so perfectly you could be forgiven for thinking the band members had become robotic.

That combination of German techno stylings and Wild West rocking manages to remain jawdropping for about another five tracks. There’s the glitchy, spliced up vocals of “Default”; the rollicking bassline of “Firewater”; the increasing layers of harmony on “Waveforms” and its thumping drumbeat that the band have the cheek to mention – “Lost in the clouds above / The rattle of drums / the click of my thumb”; the videogamey, Donkey Kong like groove of  “Zumm Zumm”; and the gorgeous harmonies of “Hand Of Man”. In fact, that song is almost nothing but harmony for nearly a minute. I like it and, again, the band knows it, making another cheeky reference to an element of a song even as it unfolds: “Sit down and talk to me / think of colour, shapes, and harmony.”

And after that? Well, that’s it really. “Love’s Dart”, once half of the band’s break out hit, still has an interesting beat but sounds remarkably insubstantial when juxtaposed with the glorious mess that precedes it. It slows the album down irrecoverably, and the same goes for “Storm”, whose sudden, surprise ending sounds less like a swaggering band leaving you wanting more [I'm thinking "Hard To Explain" by The Strokes] and more like Django Django just giving up. The same can be said for the album’s remaining tracks.

In the end, it’s tough to listen to “Django Django” without a faint hint of disappointment, and for a frankly unconventional reason: the bulk of new material on this album is so good that the tracks that got people excited about Django Django in the first place wind up weighing the album down. Django Django are definitely better than they were in 2009,but now it’s not clear if they were all that great then. Still, the first half of this album will probably be among the best 25 minutes of music you’ll hear this year and, taken in isolation, “Django Django” is an extremely promising debut. Stream the whole album on Spotify, and watch the brilliant “Hail Bop” below.

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