UK alt-electro duo Haxby Swango have released a new EP comprised of three tracks entitled ‘Banana Songs’.
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The record is an full-on, uncompromising listen that shuffles through hard industrial, hip-hop and house influences in intriguing, vibrant ways; this band is in equal parts by Calvin Harris, as they are by Smashing Pumpkins, and that makes for quite a wonderful mix – incorporating many changes in pace and tone – of sounds across the board.
Of course, this makes the release more of a challenge to review; but ‘5Deep’ starts strong with pounding beats and a monolithic bass-line that’ll work on the senses, and make ’em bounce, whether in the club, or simply, the front room. Moving on strongly, ‘Raindance’ hints at the europop genre, without getting to OTT, or shit. After an uplifting start, these lyrics of lost love and pain wrap around the listener, and serve to lull them into a false sense of security before witch-house-esque beats mix with dubstep rhythms, to great effect.
By contrast, ‘Bye-Bye…Explode’ is a full on dance/club track that is built for those willing to recreate Manchester’s hardest Hacienda days. The vocals on this one add an alternative (almost Placebo-styled) vibe that will likely help the band to appeal to a wider range of tastes.
Haxby Swango have the energy to go far, and while it’s unclear whether they can develop these intense beats and all-together frenzied structures within the live arena, we sure as hell hope to see them try one day. HS are certainly one of the UK’s brightest (and most schizophrenic) new hopes for alternative-electronic music.
