Slugs Of Love

About

The mating ritual of the leopard slug is pretty spectacular. Suspended from a branch or ledge by a trail of slime, two slugs will unite in an acrobatic dance towards reproduction. It’s a phenomenon that inspired the title track of Little Dragon’s seventh album, and one that feels in keeping with a band who spend this record embellishing everyday emotions with bright imagination and drama. Through their previous LP, the Swedes have established themselves as intrepid sonic adventurer, drawing ever more styles and genres around their core foundation of electro-pop. And they’re increasingly hard to pin down here, hopping from small-hours R&B and drum ’n’ bass to house and taut post-punk across the first three songs alone. As ever, singer Yukimi Nagano is an emotionally eloquent presence, conjuring an irresistible, visceral tug of yearning on “Frisco.” Across <i>Slugs of Love</i> though, the band’s attention to sound and detail is just as intriguing, and clever sonic flourishes share the work of evoking mood, feeling, and places with Nagano. As she sings of the giddy excitement and anticipation of new love on “Disco Dangerou,” synths spiral breathlessly around her, while a distant rattle of percussion threatens—and underlines—the lovestruck intimacy of “Easy Falling” like a loose floorboard. Static and distortion scratch and mark the edges of the blithe dub groove on “Kenneth” as Nagano feels a friendship descending towards bitterne, and the space, reverberation, and glimmering keys of “Glow” drop you deep into a dreamlike night spent under the stars with Damon Albarn. .

via Apple Music

The Clerk says

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