Search - French Kicks :: The Trial of the Century

Following Waves

M. Stafford | New York, NY United States | 02/26/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"From my blogspot site "The Boy Reviewer"



I'm not sure why this record isn't being played everywhere. I picked it up last summer and it's been at the top of my heavy rotation playlist ever since. The French Kicks have never made a bad record, but they have never made one quite so good. The Trial Of The Century finds the Kicks exploring new territory, venturing further away from the raw Marcata sound that characterizes their earlier records. The main difference? Harmony and Melody. This is an album that you want to sing along to.



The album opens with "One More Time," an urgent piece of indie-pop gold, driven by a pumping circus organ flanked by a Korgis-esque synth and a throbbing bassline that prods the song onward. The title track is another gem: a sincere, almost duotonic edxample of elegance in simiplicty. "Following Waves" and "Oh Fine" are other noteworthy tracks, beautiful for their directness.



But there aren't any tracks here that don't deliver the goods. The French Kicks don't mess around on this record. The songwriting is superb. The sounds are clean and interesting for the almost old-fashioned lack of special effects. There is no posing, no deliberate snarls, no pointless or intentional obfuscation, and no riding on the coattails of hipper, older, proven cult heros or revisited fads. The Trial Of The Century works for itself. The French Kicks have arrived."

Brilliant

M. Stafford | 05/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"the french kicks seem to have taken an easy left turn from their previous releases and, to their credit, have managed to cross several genres while maintaining certain themes such as richly layered sounds and clever vocal interplays. smooth as butter, this album will leave you dancing and loving and laughing and crying all at once. to listen to this album is to love it - good luck trying to take it off of the stereo."

New York has another great band.

York Roberts | Boston | 01/03/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"First of all, see this band live as soon as possible. You'll find that they somehow execute their sound even better on stage than they do in the studio. They are intense and fun to see.



Secondly, this is a really solid album. Anyone who says that all the songs sound alike has clearly not listened to the album enough. There are a couple of weak tracks, I will admit that, but the majority of the album is excellent. It is the type of record that requires multiple listens to fully comprehend. The standout tracks are "Only So Long", "Falls", "Trial Of The Century", "You Could Not Decide" and "One More Time". That's half the album! Each song is very well written and crafted excellently. Yes, they do use more synth on the record and at points it works to their disadvantage. However, it is a great record and I would venture to say one of the best records to come out of New York in a couple of years. The French Kicks should be getting more of that New York media attention (along with The Walkmen) while The Strokes and Interpol should be getting less.



Though their first LP was equally as good (if not better) this one solidifies them as a New York force to reckoned with. They have matured and on this sophomore effort, they turn in more hooks and use less dissonance. If you enjoy their debut record, buy this one. If you enjoy this one, buy their debut "One Time Bells". The two records are excellent and have a stark contrast in style and overall sound-scape.



Buy it. See them live."