Since self-proclaimed boy robot, Simon Curtis, released 2011’s critically-acclaimed RA, a sugary pop confection that put some life back into the stale genre, we have all been wondering when the indie artist would make his triumphant return. No need to wait any longer I suppose.
As a gift to his devoted fans, a way to bridge the gap between his last full effort and his upcoming new projects, Curtis has unleashed WWW, a collection of unreleased dance material he said was written for other artists in mind over the past two years. While “Heart In 2“, “Meteor” and “Diamonds on the Dancefloor” had been previously showcased, the rest of the eight-track effort will certainly please his loyal following of robots.
“Heart In 2“, previewed over a year ago, is thankfully the same infectious pop song it was during its debut. “You will never break my heart in two, use to crumble, baby now I’m through“, the artist sings before the dance-ready production kicks in to create a fun, stronger opener for a release that was never intended to see the light of day.
Curtis provides a simple party anthem in the form of “Neon Lights“. While it is not a lyrically complicated track, its simple, fun message and radio-friendly vibe allows the new piece to continue carving a direct path to the dancefloor for the talented indie artist. It’s not great, not bad, somewhere stuck in the middle.
While vocals are commendable on “Diamonds on the Dancefloor“, the song ultimately sounds like everything else being played on the radio at the moment. Every time the hook comes up, I’m expecting to hear Belinda Carlisle’s “Heaven Is a Place on Earth“, which would have been pretty fantastic, but I never fully get what I want.
“Meteor” is a fist-pumping, electro-pop song that I’m sure dozens of reigning pop princesses wished they would have recorded, could have been very “prismatic”. This is the type of music that would quickly get Curtis the recognition and attention he truly deserves. The soaring, love-at-first-sight track is insanely catchy and a bit reminiscent of Nicki Minaj’s “Pound the Alarm“.
With influnces from the 90s house era, the rap genre and the glorious world of pop, “Berlin Wall” transforms from a hard-hitting, rap-like effort into an up-tempo dance track which is more in line with Curtis‘ comfort zone. “Gonna start a revolution tonight“, he screams on the chorus before the energy of the empowerment anthem gets turned up a few notches. It’s a bit chaotic, but it works.
“Fight For Your Life” is another powerful, encouraging, get-your-guns-up, dance track supported by dancefloor-ready production which sounds as if it came from the minds of today’s top DJs. Curtis calls for a war, controlling all the dance floors in the world, as his charming vocals remain the highlight.
The heavy, pulsating basslines are loud and defined on “Satellite“, as the soft intro may have hinted at something a bit different. At just two minutes in length, the track tries to accomplish a lot during the short amount of time it has to shine through the speakers, it kind of succeeds.
The new music concludes with “Do I Have To Dance“, which really seems to be two, separate, near-perfect tracks fused into one. While the spotlight shines down on Curtis‘ show-stopping vocals on the first half, the second half soars thanks to the infectious production that deserves its own laser light show. The artist has created a moody, darker, dance environment with the closing track and it may be one of the most intriguing new efforts.
WWW is not an album in terms of official release, it is more of a look back into the vault of past, unreleased Simon Curtis gems over the last two years. Following the fresh sound Curtis presented on his last two full length albums, it seemed he was ready to give fans an extra helping of uptempo dance/pop tracks to sweat on the dancefloor to. With recent talks of the Robot era conclusion, the artist may be taking his music down a different route. The free project showcases Simon‘s still-flawless vocals, fun beats, and a love for the pop genre.
Get the album for FREE over at MuuMuse! Time to load your laser guns, folks!