Walt Disco, Young Hard and Handsome
Blood Records
Walt Disco are formidably polished for a band just putting out their debut EP. Fearlessly flamboyant, compellingly suave, and coolly outrageous, Young Hard and Handsome is 10 magnetic minutes of post-pop wonder. Walt Disco have already made a name for themselves as daring artists, tapping into the decadence of the 80s with an unmistakeably modern tone, and Young Hard and Handsome cements them as a band who are set to sprawl a lot wider than they have yet.
As an introduction to Walt Disco, opening track Hey Boy (You’re One Of Us) tells you all you need to know – an avant-garde choral intro that quickly shatters into a grinding bass, call-to-arms and dizzying chorus. Condemning the trappings of classic masculinity, we’re invited to shed the façade and give in to your desire to join the glamorous, darkly seductive world of Walt Disco.
Sex and swagger are key ingredients to Walt Disco, and the effervescent lead single Cut Your Hair exemplifies both – frontman James Power’s rockstar self-assuredness and tongue-in-cheek suggestiveness perch atop a classic club instrumental just shifted into the left field, and begging to be danced to. I’m What You Want takes the edge even further, combining St Vincent-esque echoing vocals with gritty guitar lines and shimmering synths. Walt Disco are definitely what we want; they’re addictive, they’re fabulous, they’re the shining, careening pop of the future.
EP closer Heather turns the volume down a touch, choosing a fluid, sweeping sound for this moment. This is as close as Walt Disco have got to a ballad, and while they’ve still got their grit they’ve managed to pen a tune that’s simultaneously a 1950’s film soundtrack and a nostalgic nightclub tune. For every twinkle there’s a throb of synth, for every bopping moment there’s a hypnotic, soaring line.
Young Hard and Handsome is a shiner of a debut – sensual, sardonic, and totally charming. One to cut shapes to and one to dig into completely, Walt Disco’s ambition is clear and when its fully realised it’ll be a spectacle to see. Young Hard and Handsome is just the beginning.
Young Hard and Handsome is out now.
