The revolution may not be televised, but it'll be heavily soundtracked by bands like Shopping, who have managed to make defiance a dance-worthy pursuit with their third album, ‘The Official Body’.
Here they question that which has become expected, accepted and ingrained - societal roles, rules or institutions, for example - while pushing the envelope themselves by branching out into synthy new musical territory. Listen to the pulsing penultimate track New Values and you’ll quickly see that it’s a welcome development.
Discover also jumps on this synth-fuelled train and acts as a palate cleanser at the midway point. Shopping shift away from unrelenting musical brightness and instead indulge darker, minor scale leanings, all the while delivering breathy backing vocals with tongues firmly in cheeks. They can never be accused of taking themselves too seriously, and therein lies their charm.
For the record’s lyrical content the band cast a wide net around its overarching theme: question everything. On Wild Child guitarist and vocalist Rachel Aggs’ advice is to “let go of everything, melt down your wedding”, while on Suddenly Gone she asks: “When will you recognise a single consequence? Or are you waiting until everything’s gone?”. On My Dad’s A Dancer: “Taking up another space, do you deserve this? You wanna take my place.”
Aggs’ signature melodic guitar lines spar wonderfully with Billy Easter’s bass, while drummer Andrew Milk keeps things ticking over at party pace. Opener The Hype and its follow up, Wild Child, showcase how truly symbiotic the band's creative relationships are, with their instruments and vocals interweaving and ricocheting off each other.
There is a chaotic brilliance to Shopping that makes this 31 minute record fly by. It's like the last half an hour of a party before your lift home, with barely enough time to warm up your dancing shoes. Therefore, repeat plays are advised.
Shopping Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Thu February 01 2018 - GLASGOW Mono
Fri February 02 2018 - NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE Cluny2
Sat February 03 2018 - MANCHESTER Eagle Inn
Sun February 04 2018 - NOTTINGHAM Maze
Mon February 05 2018 - OXFORD Cellar
Tue February 06 2018 - LONDON Moth Club
Wed February 07 2018 - BRISTOL Exchange
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