Electric Six – Fresh Blood for Tired Vampyres

Even as a long time and huge fan of Detroit rockers Electric Six, I’m beginning to lose track of the numbers of albums they’ve had thanks to a succession of side projects, Kickstarter releases and live LPs, but here we are on this year’s main album release and it’s number twelve, ‘Fresh Blood for Tired Vampyres’. And whilst the title refers to new members injecting some new energy into the band, this new album ends up feeling like it’s not quite as fresh as you’d hope, which is a sad thing for me to say as a big fan, especially when compared to the recent Kickstarter-funded soundtrack to their TV pilot ‘Roulette Stars of Metro Detroit’ which was such a great collection of tracks.

Coming in at thirteen tracks and forty-five minutes, things start off quite promisingly for the new release even if opener ‘Acid Reducer’ is only an instrumental and therefore lacks the energy that many album starters have brought to the table. It’s a solid electronic soundscape to open with and doesn’t outstay its welcome at one minute long, but it’s up to first track proper ‘The Number of the Beast’ (no, not that one) to carry the start, and it’s a catchy piece of electronic-rock with a memorable lead up to the chorus and some karaoke-friendly lyrical riffs, plus the electronic vocoder-effects and tempo shifts work well, as do the tongue-in-cheek mathematical references. It’s not their best song – some of the lyrics are a little forced – but it balances the band’s cross-section of genres, tongue-in-cheek lyrics and love of a hook well.

Track three ‘Mood Is Improving’ starts off in a rather sombre, downbeat fashion but the tempo begins to shift up and leads to a much more energetic chorus that lifts the tones up a little, even if the chorus is basically repeating the title. Its music style is more interesting than the final product. The verses don’t quite have the same spark as the chorus but the music holds it together well.

Up next are two of the best tracks on the album. ‘I’ll Be In Touch’ is more like classic Electric Six, mixing up a memorable chorus with some solid production, especially in the shift forty-seconds in, and a fun swagger. ‘Lottery Reptiles’, though not quite as great as the previously released remix, is one of the best numbers on the album with a more stripped-back rock feel and plenty of hooks slotted throughout its three-and-a-half minute running time. Sounding like it could be great live this has a strong sing-a-long feel to it.

‘Dance With Dark Forces’ is another one of the better tracks on the album, the poppy-club feel working really well, the lyrics and vocal tricks refreshing, and there’s even time for some production wizardary near the end to show off something a little different and it feels like the first song on the album where everything gels in a slightly more unusual way.

‘(Be My) Skin Caboose’, which lifts a little at the start from ‘The New Shampoo’, is another highlight of the album, the jazzy electronic music and shift into the chorus working well together and it’s a fun, poppy number with some pleasing funk to proceedings.

‘My Dreams’ is the best track on the album thanks to its funky, fast-paced and catchy chorus and its slow build up from the start through several tempo shifts. Though its explicit lyrics at time feel unnecessary, its energetic style is great and there’s time for some well-orchestrated electronic break downs. If one track was to be taken from the album to appear on a future best-of compilation it would be this one.

However, from this point the album takes a bit of a down-turn. ‘I Got the Box’ has its moments, mainly in the chorus, but it feels a little by-the-numbers for the most part. ‘Lee Did This To Me’ is a bit more energetic with a strong sense of fun in the lyrics next to a strong guitar riff playing through it but is otherwise a little forgettable, though it’s the best in this batch of songs thanks to its guitar work and daft lyrics.

‘Greener Pastures’ is definite filler and ultimately skippable, but at least ‘The Lover’s Pie’ adds a bit more pizzazz back to the album even if ‘The New Shampoo’ does seem to have influenced things again. From the electronic stuttering intro through to the funky bassline, this is a well-produced song with a neat jazzy breakdown.

Closer ‘Space Walkin’’ with its opening vocal effects and stripped-back style feels like a better entry onto the album and wraps things up positively, thanks to its evocative lyrics and commitment to the sound, though its not the strongest album closer.

Though there are some great songs on the album – primarily ‘Lottery Reptiles’, ‘Dance with Dark Forces’ and ‘My Dreams’ – I’m afraid to say that ‘Fresh Blood For Tired Vampyres’ will likely go down as my least favourite of the dozen albums so far. Lacking in any really memorable songs this feels like the band on autopilot, which is a shame in the wake of their great Kickstarter album from earlier in the year which is superior to this in songs and sound. This feels like the first album that doesn’t make me want to put it on repeat, which is a shame, though it does improve after a handful of spins. At times what seems to be a theme around ‘blockers’ becomes a little tired as that word appears time and time again across songs.

‘Fresh Blood for Tired Vampyres’ still has its stand out tracks but it doesn’t really jump out to me as a particularly exciting album though the three tracks I highlighted should make great inclusions into future live sets. Sadly in this case there doesn’t seem to have been enough fresh blood here to re-animate the vampyres.

(6/10)