With the 2010 release of their debut effort, Illumination, the Melbourne-based quartet of Miami Horror, comprised of founding member, Benjamin Plant (DJ and producer), Josh Moriarty (vocals, guitar), Aaron Shanahan (guitar, vocals and production) and Daniel Whitechuch (bass, keyboards and guitar) received both national and international attention for a sound that, at the time, seemed to owe a debt to New Order, Prince, Michael Jackson, E.L.O. and others.
After the release of Illumination, the quartet spent the next 3 years shuttling between their hometown of Melbourne, Los Angeles and Paris writing and then recording the material that would eventually comprise their recently released sophomore effort, All Possible Futures, which was released to critical praise earlier this year. Interestingly, the band’s relocation to Los Angeles for the All Possible Futures sessions, the vibe and feel of Southern California had quickly became a major influence on the band and it’s sound. As the band’s Benjamin Plant mentions in press notes, “We wanted to move to LA for inspiration and influence more than anything. It helped us to experiment and find our own sound. If you look at a lot of the alternative electronica and dance music coming out of LA it definitely has a feel – we love the weirdness and sunshine. It has been a strong influence on many of our favourite records from the 60s-80s and we wanted to allow it to influence this record.”
All Possible Futures‘ latest single “Cellophane (So Cruel)” manages to possess a bright, neon pop feel much like the album’s previous single “Love Like Mine” but pairs that feel with late 80s and early 90s house music, as dense layers of cascading synths and propulsive drum programming with silky smooth harmonies. Sonically, the song reveals a band that has actually found its voice, while paying homage to slickly produced 80s pop –without mimicking the sound period that influenced it, and while possessing slickly modern production values. Simply put it’s a summery, pop confection that you can do a two-step to with a fling.
The official video is one of the strangest videos I’ve seen in some time as it features a woman with a Mister Fantastic-like arm and a man with a Mister Fantastic leg dealing with the difficulties of a romantic relationship.
