Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Georgetown University’s Newspaper of Record since 1920

The Hoya

Fanfarlo Shines Bright On Second Album

Fanfarlo burst onto the indie music scene with its debut album Reservoir. Its glistening ’80s pop-like sound hooked listeners with songs that were both danceable and introspective. As earnest as a debut album but with the confidence of a sophomore effort, Rooms Filled With Light builds on this sound without straying too far into obscurity.

The album opens with “Replicate,” a dark tune that proves more unnerving than enticing. Staccatoed strings and panicked lyrics create a cinematic tension that slowly melts into an optimism that carries on for the duration of the album. Follow-up “Deconstruction” seems to be the band’s reward to the listener for making it through those anxious first few minutes. Bursting with typical indie-pop, feel-good vibes, “Deconstruction” finds the band right where it left fans after Reservoir.

Shimmering trumpet and earnest handclaps weave a perfect background for lead singer Simon Balthazar’s lively vocals that sound strikingly like a more eager version of David Byrne. The stark juxtaposition of “Replicate” and “Deconstruction” is proof that Fanfarlo can’t be pigeonholed into a single genre.

“Lens Life” adds to the head-bobbing appeal of the first half of Rooms Filled With Light. Drenched in nostalgia, Balthazar simultaneously aches for a simpler time while excitedly looking forward to the future. Starting with a modest, plunking piano, the song builds to a powerful climax, only to ease back to its modest beginning.

Fanfarlo combines the warmth of indie music with the foot-tapping optimism of ’80s pop. Using lush synthesizers, which are at times subtle and enveloping and at others danceable and catchy, they create an ebb and flow of intensity and relief. “Shiny Things” and “Tanguska” do exactly this — ambient noise contrasted with bright horn sections can make the listener become exhausted in the best way possible. The first five tracks of Rooms Filled With Light would make for a great summer album on their own, and maybe in this February of multiple 60-plus-degree days, the timing was perfect.

On the appropriately named “Everything Turns,” Rooms Filled With Light shifts from buoyant to moody. Sounding like a music box, it is sure to turn some listeners away.

The rest of the album remains relatively subdued, save for a few moments of Cure-esque, ’80s bliss. Unfortunately, the songs become tiresome in their similarity. Still, Fanfarlo proves it can hold its own in a genre that is becoming increasingly indistinguishable.

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