Rating 4/10
Europeans love to dance. Thus we have bands like Daft Punk, Justice, Air, and of course Digitalism. Digitalism is a German electro house duo that has never really stood apart from the genre, but has made somewhat of a name for themselves with a decent debut, a generous amount of rhythmic remixes, and now a new sophomore album.
I Love You, Dude is short, totaling ten tracks alternating between instrumentals and tracks with vocals; both featuring their own sets of strengths and weaknesses. Most of the vocal tracks give the impression that they could have been the pop hits they were intended to be if they hadn’t been delivered by the dull restrained voice of lead vocalist Jens Moelle. Such is the case with the track “Forest Gump” which was co-written by Strokes front man Julian Casablancas; but despite Casablancas’ insight, the vocal delivery sabotages the entire track with their complete lack of any kind of captivation. The exception to this rule is the track “2 Hearts” which just so happens to be the album’s lead single and the only vocal track to hit its mark as far as a passable hook.
The instrumental tracks seem to play more to the band’s strengths but with more of a pop sensibility and less of the aggression that we saw in the debut Idealism. Tracks like “Blitz” and “Miami Showdown” deliver the entrancing danceability that will at least give this album some play time in the discotheques. The overall issue with the instrumentals is their overall repetitive nature and lack of development. Opening track “Stratosphere”, while only clocking in at an even three minutes, seems to go on forever in a static kind of flow without any kind of pull or climax.
Ultimately, this album is just too monotonous, which is surprising considering Digitalism took an extensive four years between albums. With that in mind, I Love You, Dude gives off the impression of an album that was simply over thought during the writing process; struggling to incorporate more variance while still holding onto the core genre.
Album Highlights: 2 Hearts, Blitz, Miami Showdown
Album Low Points: Stratosphere, Circles, Forrest Gump
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