MARSHALL STAR
UNCONTROLLABLE
FURRY RECORDS
The first full-length release from this British duo is unlike anything you’ve ever heard before. The band’s own label for its unique genre is ? urban/alt,? though it might better be described as R&B vocals layered over electronica. This male/female duo makes the most of electronic drum kits, sampling, and a plethora of vocal overlays to form a textured tapestry of cool soul that will appeal to the most jaded listener. Though bands such as Portishead and Morcheeba have made inroads in similar styles, no band yet has pushed the envelope as far as Marshall Star. Give this U.K. band huge marks for creativity and an uncompromising attitude.
-Dug
UNCONTROLLABLE
FURRY RECORDS
The first full-
Author: Max Chen aka Stegosaurus Rex
18.06.2008
At first glance from the CD art, I thought the music contained inside would be terrible. This is clearly an instance of “don’t judge an album by its cover,” because the tracks were loaded with some of the best tracks I have heard in a while. Filled to the brim with an eclectic mix of shoegaze and soul, peace and power, rhythm and restlessness, Marshall Star’s Cosmos is a winner. From the first track “Goodbye Truly,” I was presented with a taste of vocalist Mandy’s Bright powerful breath competing with the complex, noisy layers of post-punk sound, and I knew that there were going to be some gems on the recording. Track 4 “The Pleasure Seekers” eerily reminds me with its desolate lyrics and its heavy synth-pop beat of Eurythmics “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of These).” Track 12, unlisted on the recording (but elsewhere as “Take Me”) is a frantically-paced mixed of dissonance and heavy drums along with Mandy’s sweet voice. The best track on the album, of course, is track 2 “Hopes And Aspirations,” which sounds a bit like Cocteau Twins, but without Elizabeth Frazer’s dull vocal performance. Instead, with the bright and layered wall of noisy melodies, we are given a chance to witness the tour de force of Mandy’s vocals coupled with a powerful marching beat. The aggressive lyrics “got my hopes and aspirations driving me insane” reflects perfectly the maddening movement of such a beautiful track. All I can hope for is for listeners to look past the artwork, and to fully immerse into this album, especially into the more manic tracks.
Bubblegum Slut magazine July 2008
An electro soul-rock album to get tongues wagging.. ‘Potent’, ‘strong stuff’, a voice weaned on ‘gospel’ & soul’
An electro soul-