To My Boy - The Habitable Zone

01. Underneath The Pylons
02. Hello Horizon
03. Antarctica
04. Us + The Wind
05. When I Was a Cloud
06. Looking For a New Way
07. Delightful Beams
08. Overload
09. The Generators
10. We Are Your Ancestors

To start with at least To My Boy on their second album ‘The Habitable Zone’, they come across like a fat free version of Scissor Sisters. So they’re definitely for people who have an aversion to Scissor Sisters. Although there is still an unbridled joy to be found in their new album, albeit tinged with sadness, so for people who enjoyed the Scissor Sisters first hit laden album, then they to can embrace To My Boy’s charming electronica.

Although in To My Boy’s case a huge hug is in need particularly for singer Sam who has a sorrowfully beautiful voice, which pierces the duo’s brand of sad-sophistopop which bounds with a saddened yet gladdened heart on opening track ‘Underneath The Pylons’, before touching on the glacial synths of ‘Hello Horizons.’

They touch upon The Raptures introspective and futuristic angst, on ‘Us + The Wind’, which includes the worrying line of ‘Drink, drink, drag me down’, and ‘we have let you down’, with Sam’s vocals turning into something of a one man choir during the track.

Before turning into a long lost The Stone Roses track on the fluffy fly away electronic wiz of ‘When I was A Cloud’, its like a cousin of ‘Fools Gold’ if it was done by The Orb. It’s possibly the most cheerful track on here, so at least you get chance to dry your tears for a while. Although they get dizzy again on ‘Delightful Beams’, informing us about ‘Pornographic, flat nothingness’ – whatever that is. This is followed by the sharp electro teeth of ‘Overload.’ Which touches on the 80’s giants, Erasure – when they were good, Tears For Fears, and err Spandau Ballet, possibly a bit too much. Before the electro epic duo of ‘The Generators’, and ‘We Are Your Ancestors.’...www.subba-cultcha.com