Indie duo Blue Violet is back with their electrifying second album, “Faux Animaux,” a bolder, shape-shifting collection that cements Sarah McGrigor and Sam Gotley as fearless explorers. Their 11-track odyssey here bears so many elements, a taut through-line of indie, rock, disco, and punk, that its soundscape turns as unpredictable as it is immersive.
From the beginning, Faux Animaux crackles with the energy of a band that relishes evolution. Designed for their live show, the album distinguishes between fragile introverts and moments of explosive energy. Nowhere is this duality more potently explored than in “Imagine Me,” around which darker lyrical preoccupations slice through an addictive, knotty rhythm to a potent juxtaposition that resonates long.
Midway through the album, “Talking to You” haunts the mood. “Barefoot On The Seine” is another unexpected ride starting with gentle acoustic strumming before bursting into a raging, punk-informed breakdown, showcasing Blue Violet’s fearless approach to genre-blurring.
There’s an irresistible vigor in the pulsating “Boogie Shoes,” which adds a glistening disco throb to the album’s stylistic palette, even as the wordier, grittier poetry shadows its buoyant tempo. Closing out the journey is the title track, “Faux Animaux,” which finds the record slowing things down with a brooding and moody atmosphere, an introspective and appropriate ending to a record that can’t entirely be cornered.
With tracks like “Sweet Success,” “Fire,” “Survival,” “The Librarian,” and “Teeth Out,” Blue Violet has shown that no two moments on Faux Animaux sound alike. Theirs is a braiding of textures and moods that makes an album as unpredictable as it is delightful. “Faux Animaux” is essential listening for fans of boundary-pushing indie music. This is the sound of a duo unafraid to take chances, making an album as dynamic and exciting as their live shows.
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