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It's fun to delve into quirk, now and then. Fun to sink into music, swim in the shallows of the sound, float along the lyrics, and dive into the beats. It's fun and cathartic, and nothing makes a moment more memorable than what's playing in the background. Hey, that's why they play sad music at the lowest point in a movie, because it makes the emotions hit home. The best thing I can say for Penguin Prison's style of music, is that they capture this idea fully.


Immersing yourself in the eponymous debut is the only way to go, letting it carry you along a winding river of sound. Whether the sound is melancholic, funky, uplifting, or dismal, Penguin Prison commits, and it's that commitment that brings it home.

Breathing is Good

Probably the best example lies where the music has a chance to breathe. Adding too much to a track finds it overcrowded, a common mishap in electronic music. Like anything, it's the simple ideas that go the furthest, and Penguin Prison's "Desert Cold" has got this down pat. The track is simple, bouncy, with a handclap rhythm and staccato synths. It's the buoyant type of synthpop that, while it may not be winning awards, wins hearts over. The track breathes, its space is wide open while also commanding attention through the use of subtlety. That same use of subtlety makes other tracks, like "Something I'm Not", work as well. "Something I'm Not" is an atypical track, the beat structure moving away from the root of the track, instead acting as fine details.

It's a contrast to the heavier tracks on the album, like "The Worse It Gets," "A Funny Thing," and "Multi-Millionaire," which all thrive from heavy beats and synths that emulate the successful acts from Australia (Empire of the Sun, Pnau, Ladyhawke) as well as Sweden's Sound of Arrows. Heavy isn't necessarily worse though, as Penguin Prison shows on the Occupy-supporting "Don't F*** With My Money," a groovy, funky synth-laden New Radicals-esque electronic fiesta. This is a level of fun I feel guilty for having a song with a video shot in the midst of the Occupy movement. Clearly I'm missing the point, but damn am I enjoying shaking my ass to this track.

A few shining moments when things come together

On a downer note, Penguin Prison's album doesn't have a lot of shining moments. While, overall, the album is above average, only a few times do things really come together in a fascinating way. "Don't F*** With My Money" is a great example of the right beats, the right synths, the right words, and the right voice. All of these elements are present in other songs, with the exception that they just don't mesh as you'd expect. So after you're done jamming out to "A Funny Thing," you may find yourself a little disappointed with "Golden Train." And "Pinocchio" may not rise up to the standard set by "Desert Cold," which sits in front of it on the album. It doesn't mean that "Golden Train" and "Pinocchio" aren't quality tracks, but they are also not of a level that demands attention. Same goes for "Fair Warning," "In The Way," and "Someone Got Everything." Not exceptional, but not bad.

Summary

While Penguin Prison's album does offer a fair amount of quality, the inclusion of some tracks makes me wonder if they couldn't have created a stronger presence by going the route of the EP. Was a full album necessary? Still, it's an enjoyable enough listen, albeit to get the best possible listening experience you could remove a few tracks and just jam on through. Standouts include "Desert Cold," "A Funny Thing," "Something I'm Not," and "Don't F*** With My Money." It'll be interesting to see how Penguin Prison does, but right now we're just hoping they don't go the Frankmusik way and drop what made those standouts stand out in the first place.



Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the record label. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.