South-East London duo Oh Wonder have built up a reputation for offering up penetrating, indie-electronic tunes which echo with a soflty lilting, easy-on-the-ear flair.
The hype surrounding the pair when they broke out a couple of years ago, seemed to mushroom in size at such a rate, that I felt I wanted in on this craze which Anthony and Josephine of the band were taking in their strides and reaping the rewards of. However, there was a pinch of something about what they were doing, which fell short of finding me as a fan. Believe me I went back and re-listened to the tracks which eventually formed their self-titled debut album more than I care to remember. On paper, Oh Wonder have appeared the kind of band I would be wildly into but I felt I just wasn’t getting it as I felt I should be. Although, the gently soothing harmonies more than shone out. I guess I’ve mostly wanted Oh Wonder to evolve a little, away from the pressures they set themselves by completing and delivering a new track every month for over a year.
Fast forward to the present, as Oh Wonder step back into the spotlight with the first material in two years. The title track of upcoming sophomore album “Ultralife”, reveals that the duo have fleshed out their melody arrangements with a sound notched up in euphoric beats, combined of their signature eclectic mix of strings, piano and percussion. All at once, I am swept up in the inescapably infectious melody and can’t resist dancing in my chair.
This is pop which defies genre definition, as it effortlessly criss-crosses the boundaries of so many pop music classification headings. I just can’t put it in a draw other than that marked melodically memorable.