I am tempted to begin this with a preface like “a band I’ve been meaning to post on forever…” but that sounds like one of Hacks’ intros, and yeah, I don’t play that game. The fact of the matter is this: Friendly Fires are a UK 3-piece that make a bigger, louder disco-punk ruckus than any of their contemporaries, and buoy the racket with stop-on-a-dime synth-padded prettiness. They’re At The Drive-In with their hearts on fire, reaching out to you both tonight, in the glistening cool of the evening, and tomorrow, in the sticky sweat of the afternoon heat. I’ve been consistently shocked, over and over again, at how good these guys are, how they work for moods both aggressive and tender.
Friendly Fires: Paris (Justus Kohncke mix)
When I found this, yesterday (via The Fader who maybe, one day, will acknowledge my fanboying with a little wink, a nod, a sip of the Hennessy, something), it struck me how much I’d been neglecting on posting any Friendly Fires. “Paris” has long been my favorite FF song, both from their EPs and their recently-released s/t debut full-length, because it hits the sweet spots I mentioned earlier. It’s a disco freak-out, it’s a spacey love jam, it’s pretty in the middle with nails sticking out of the raw wood with sanded edges. Kohncke’s remix, though…jesus. This is sublime. It’s long, it’s droning, it’s minimialist prettiness with shine instead of rawness around the original tune. This is my definition of a “jam” at the moment, to be quite honest.
Friendly Fires: Paris (original)
The original, for comparison, and because it’s a little bit of a different creature. It’s more fierce, which highlights the tender, and kinda humorous, aspects of the lover interplay in the lyrics: “One day/we’re gonna live in Paris/I promise/I’m on it…” the couple will then find themselves the French lovers of their dreams, and…and then who knows?
The self-titled debut album comes with highest regard.
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