Subba Cultcha Archangel Album Review

Another great review for Archangel's debut album "How To Lose Your Best Friend", from Subba Cultcha

"One-man-band, Archangel, takes us on a retro trip back to the 80s.

From Mystery Jets to Mark Ronson, if there's one thing that's going through more than a slight resurgence at the moment it's the 80s. Step into your local Topshop, turn on the radio or enter within a 5 mile vicinity of Hoxton and I'll bet your neon legwarmers that the first thing you hear will be synths. So when the first bars of distorted keyboard effects kick in on album opener and title track, 'How to Lose Your Best Friend', there's more than a slight feeling of 'here we go again' to be had. Wrong. Because whilst a whole host of other bands are semi- ripping off the decade, Archangel is so committed to the cause you feel like the album may have come inbuilt with a tardis to take you back 25 years. That's a positive thing by the way.

Archangel, aka Nick Webber, apparently locked himself away for 18 months in a little house in Wiltshire with nowt but his collection of 70s and 80s records for company whilst making this album, and in a strange way it shows; apart from the obvious influences that have been brought to it, there's a kind of frantic energy that runs through the whole thing. Pounding drum tracks and multi-layerd electro blips abound, somehow managing to create a very internal, almost insular experience at odds with the upbeat, dance sensibilities of the tracks themselves.

At its best points, How To Lose Your Best Friend is a stomping disco beast in the vein of Friendly Fires or Roxy Music- 'Drive' and recent single 'Physical Energy' are two prime examples- but at times, and admittedly they are thankfully few in number, Archangel manages to lose the required edge that keeps him from descending into happy-clappy Feeling-esque pop ('Loud and Clear', 'Not The Man You Think I Am'). However, a stonking cover of Steely Dan's 'Do It Again' and even a sample of Maxine Nightingale's 'Right Back Where We Started From' are more than enough to redeem his granny-pop sins.

In general, 'How To Lose Your Best Friend', is a solid debut and one that should be applauded for managing to both be completely on the fashion money yet still set itself apart from the countless others doing the same. Maybe next time he'd benefit from having an objective eye join him down in his Wiltshire bunker, but for now Archangel should be pretty pleased with this first release. "I want what I have not"? Well, we want what you have. Mostly."

Read the review here