Album Review

Tegan And Sara – Heartthrob

• 7th Feb 2013

Canadian twins Tegan and Sara may not be a name you would instantly recognize but that is all about to change. The duo have been making music for close to two decades and it is surprising that they haven’t made a dent in the UK market until now. The same cannot be said about the success they have achieved in their Canadian homeland however where the twins hold a household name status and have done so for most of their recording career.

Thankfully it is now time for the unveiling of quite possibly the best act to take on the UK mainstream this year as the duo are preparing for the release of their seventh studio album and what we hear on the new album is that it is perhaps the move in music direction that will appeal to the UK masses.

Opening number ‘Closer’ is the first song to be taken from the release and if Ellie Goulding and the Pet Shop Boys were to have a lovechild – this would be the offspring. Combining an array of spacey sound effects with the twins’ eighties drenched vocals the number is a good start to the new record and should do fairly well with pop loving Brits.

‘Goodbye, Goodbye’ is an energetic and fresh future hit that has qualities not too dissimilar to early Cyndi Lauper material. It’s intelligently orchestrated and carries one of the records most infectious chorus’.

Ballads provide a sturdy staple to ‘Heartthrob’ and that is evident with the albums standout inclusion, ‘I Was A Fool’. A piano plays away in the background of this song but never steals the spotlight from the driving yet smooth synth foundation that the sisters pour their souls over with their distinctive and matured vocals. This could be a huge hit for the dup if the song gets a single release.

The pair’s indie roots echo throughout the center of the album, particularly on the pulsating ‘Drove Me Wild’. Its up-tempo deliciousness with a rocky edge to it and includes some sweet harmonies that complement the number nicely. That ‘rough around the edges’ quality also shines through on ‘How Come You Don’t Want Me’ showing that the girls haven’t lost their signature indie sound entirely.

Nearing the end of the album ‘Now I’m All Messed Up’ delivers one of the records most eclectic additions. Its verses are driven by a slow paced keyboard tinkering while its chorus is a techno infused storm of effects with bittersweet lyrics pulling the track together nicely.

The duo started out in the mid-nineties and their sound was very different back then compared to what we hear on ‘Heartthrob’. Earlier releases like their debut ‘Under Feet Like Ours’, its follow up ‘This Business Of Art’ and 2002’s ‘If It Was You’ all carried a much more guitar driven, indie-pop feel to them. Fast forward a decade and ‘Heartthrob’ appears to have adopted a much more commercial, electro and synth-pop approach, perhaps a move that the girls hope will appeal more to the mainstream with so many artists these days finding a greater success within the genre.

‘Heartthrob’ is the perfect release to start the New Year off with a synth coated bang and a spectacular effort for one of the best new acts to take over the UK in 2013.

Venue: Heartthrob
Support Band: Warner