Artist: The Big Pink
Title: Future This
Record Label: 4AD
Rating: 8.5

If you were to venture onto ego magnifying glass website Facebook and look up The Big Pink, you’ll notice the influences the duo have listed are Dr Dre and Thurston Moore. These influences are brightly scattered across The Big Pink’s latest record, Future This. From the looping samples and beats of hip hop to the squalling white noise of shoegaze, Milo Cordell and Robbie Furze recognise their inspiration and combine both genres with sublime results.

The Big Pink have always tangled with the notion of creating noise and Future This is a further voyage into the realms of feedback and electronics. Starting out as the album means to go on, opening track ‘Stay Gold’ announces itself with looped drums and abrasive noise. What’s immediately recognisable is how confident the band sound; particularly the vocal by Furze is almost anthemic.Something that The Big Pink do effortlessly is produce walls of noise that sound like pop hits from another dimension.

When it came to realising the potential of Future This, Cordell and Furze called in some formidable help, one being super producer Paul Epworth famed for his work with Florence and the Machine and Friendly Fires, to assist with recording and Alan Moulder to help mix the album. Moulder is best known for his work with Depeche Mode and My Bloody Valentine, so he was the ideal person to bond electronics and tidal waves of sound.

Hiding between the noise and commotion there are elements of serenity, like at the beginning of ‘Give It Up’, when the track announces itself with the gentle whirlwind of swooping strings. Equally, album closer ‘77’ opens up like an artful whale song with a tumbling hip hop refrain, acting as the antithesis
to Future This’ sonic assault.

The theme of graffiti is sprayed across this sophomore record like tags on a subway train, especially with the wash of colourful noise that is sent spewing from the speakers on every listen. The periodic theme of graffiti is visible on the Future This’ album artwork as it was created by highly acclaimed
street artist KR.

Combining two inventive music genres and experimenting with sound has ensured that The Big Pink has birthed an intriguing second album and one that always has one eye on the future.

Words and Thoughts of Adam Williams