July 26, 2011

White Life: Throwback R&B From Baltimore

White Life's debut reeks of 1986: I'm talking Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)," Madonna's "True Blue," and Club Nouveau's "Rumors." Cheesy drum machine patter, air guitar-quality synthesizer solos, and contagious vocal melodies color this Baltimore group's addictive and highly replayable LP. Comprised of Jon Ehrens and his sister Emily, the band breathes heaps of funk and fun into their retro R&B project, cherry picking tones from the late 1980s and early 1990s. The end result, however, is a surprisingly refreshing mixture of sounds that feel unequivocally original, thanks in part to the emotive and entirely unselfconscious singing from both Jon and Emily. If fellow synth-heavy group Washed Out slices with a butter knife, White Life here resemble a freshly honed butcher's blade with sharp hooks that cut deep. If you're not laughing, dancing, or singing-along when you hear this record, you're doing it wrong.

Purchase the LP or CD from Ehse Records. The album is also available digitally via a pay-what-you-want scenario.

White Life - "I Want Love" (from White Life)
White Life - "Flirp" (from White Life)

Future Islands

1 comment:

  1. Follow them on twitter @whitelifemusic for updates on August tour and more

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