A little history this time - Freezepop are a band I've know about for a looooooong time. Another one of those bands I picked up back in the days of limewire when I was searching for stuff to scratch my electropop / electroclash itch around the time (though to be fair, that never really went away!). You might have heard of some of their early work: tracks like Bike Thief, Science Genius Girl or Less Talk More Rokk. Their early work is a little twee to my ears these days, but charmingly so - it's a little quirky in its execution like so many of us were back in our awkward teen years, fittingly that's what they were soundtracking for me.
They then fell off my radar for a long long while, when I checked back in with them I went straight for their then-new album Imaginary Friends, which is a pretty marked development in sound. They still make synthpop, but tracks like We Don't Have Normal Lives feel much more... I suppose refined is the word when compared with their early works. Gone is the sugar fuelled hyperactive feel, the kind that gave rise to their twist of Duran Duran with tracks like Boys On Film. Instead We Don't Have Normal Lives plays out more like the general synthpop of the 2010s era. That's not to say it's generic or anything, but it's certainly closer to that than anything else.
Potentially a disappointment if you were after more of their cheeky and playful electronic of old, but I really like it. Aside from having a soft spot for this kind of sound anyway, I love how it's essentially like looking back at old photos of yourself but in audio form - from the goofy shenanigans of the past to something a little more serious. I will always hold a torch for their tracks that sound like they are from an indie film like Here Comes A Special Boy though, I haven't had a chance to check out their return album released 10 years after this in 2020, but given how they've followed me through life so far maybe I should give it a spin sometime soon.
And that'll do for this unexpectedly wistful instalment of this series - and that also wraps up the first week! It's been pretty good so far, it's much easier to knock out a couple of paragraphs on a random piece from my library than the more long-form posts. I'm still planning to mix it up a bit with a couple of them sprinkled in if I get time, but I'm pretty happy with the process so far. And finally, as always - stay safe and enjoy the music!
-CVF
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