SOFY MAJOR

Billed in press blurb as a noise rock/metal trio, 'Idolize' is the sophomore full-length effort from French act Sofy Major. Transcending its noise rock/metal branding, their music is also flavoured with hardcore elements (primarily through the vocal style), sludge (courtesy of some muddily distorted guitars and slower-paced passages), and some prominent grooves. It's the latter that provides a sonically infectious foundation for Sofy Major's music and, skilfully, they're able to sustain the groove quota across a range of tempos as well as rhythmically conventional and more challenging time signatures. As such, 'Idolize' makes for pretty engaging listening fodder as there's plenty of diversity in their compositional palette to get your teeth into, although it's a cleverly blended diversity as their fusion of influences binds together as a well-rounded, groovy whole. A few breaks in the album's general vibe and groove-based essence arrive with 'UMPKK pt.1', an atmospheric, instrumental piece, and the slow-paced 'Seb' with its almost disconcerting, babbled vocals and show a different side to the band's musical vocabulary. Production-wise, 'Idolize' has a nicely organic, live feel to it which both accentuates and engenders a raw energy in their individual and collective performances. Interestingly, it seems the initial recording process was hit by disaster in the form of hurricane Sandy in autumn 2012 which destroyed the studio within which they were based and band's gear. So when Dave Curran of American noise rock trio Unsane stepped in to help out, I'm sure the Sofy Major guys must've been bursting with determination and feral energy to lay down the tracks good and proper. At least, this is what comes across in the recordings. And I'm sure that many will be revelling in the fact that 'Idolize' came to fruition despite nature's cataclysmic interference, as this is great stuff. Not a masterpiece by any means but, nonetheless, an infectiously groovy fucker.

LABEL:

FORMAT:

Solar Flare Records

Album

IDOLIZE

Review by Mark Holmes

RUNNING TIME:

43:00

RELEASE DATE:

31st May 2013

TRACK LISTING

1) Aucune Importance
2) Comment
3) Steven the Slow
4) Bbbbreak
5) UMPKK pt.1
6) UMPKK pt.2
7) Slow and Painful
8) Coffee Hammam
9) Seb
10) Frost Forward
11) Power of Their Voice

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:

France

"Not a masterpiece by any means but, nonetheless, an infectiously groovy fucker."