West Coast (UK)

ands like Studio are the stuff of music critics' dreams. Taking all the right cues from '80s indie pop, rarified dance genres (cosmic, space, and italo), and various '70s psychedelic explorers, Studio became 'blog-house' darlings in 2007 with their debut singles collection, the ultra-scarce, YEARBOOK 1--most of which now appears on the more widely released WEST COAST. Though they bear the synth-driven imprint of various new wave acts, Studio jettisons the slick electro of other synth-pop recidivists and assimilates the slower, and more deliberate tempos of psych rock and dub reggae. Weaving melodic guitar lines around echoing beats and the wayward bleat of a melodica, "Origin" sounds like King Tubby producing Manuel Gottsching jamming with the Cure. But WEST COAST is not just a knowing nod to its influences, rather it's a synthesis of different approaches and sounds combined in unfamiliar ways. From the percolating synth patter and afro-beat tinged guitar of "Life's a Beach!" to the cinematic nighttime run of "Out There," no one approach dominates the carefully programmed set--reminding the casual listener that they could be hearing some long lost Factory Records act as easily as a Scandinavian space disco production.|