Paranoid London

PL

BY Daniel SylvesterPublished Aug 27, 2019

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On their self-titled debut, Paranoid London expertly followed the blueprint laid out by Chicago house — craft personality-rich beats and find someone with even more personality to sing overtop of them.
 
On their long-awaited followup, the British duo make some slight tweaks to keep things even more bonkers. As their 2015 album relied on a pair on vocalists, Mutado Pintado and Paris Brightledge, sophomore full-length PL utilizes a whole stable of collaborators to create a pleasingly wobbly and splintered set of songs.
 
On album highlights "Cult Hero (Do You Want to Touch Me)" and "Nobody Watching," Simon Topping, of dance-punk godfathers A Certain Ratio, and the aforementioned Pintado speak-sing over forward-moving bouncing beats and adventurous rhythms.
 
Bringing in clips from deceased producer Bubbles Bubblesynski ("The Boombox Affair") and a final vocal performance from Suicide vocalist Alan Vega ("Angel of Hell"), just adds to the unbridled feel of the album. On PL, Paranoid London mess indiscriminately with rhythms, conventions — and your mind.
(Independent)

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