Freak Heat Waves
Bonnie's State Of Mind (Hockey Dad Records)
Channeling Berlin-era Bowie and Eno via the peaceful town of Victoria, British Columbia, Freak Heat Waves have brought us a sophomore LP that defies genre and expectation.
The album begins with the instrumental “Plastic-Coated Dancers”, a sort of Kratfwerk-on-acid type of song that conjures visions of dark night clubs and a moonlit Autobahn. First single “Design Of Success” could pass for a John Foxx B-side, or a slowed down Visage deep cut, occasionally letting shadowy French passages spoken by a female, presumed to be an alien, sashay in and out of the track.
As their press release suggests, there are elements of Krautrock, post-punk and futurism in Bonnie’s State Of Mind. But by keeping it diverse, they avoid the modern problem of genre-snatching. “Sinking In a Pale Cloud” features distant harmonic horns crying out from some other green world, softly melding into “China Blue”, the closest thing to a ballad you’ll find on Bonnie, and a song that could easily find a place on a soundtrack to some 1980s existential Wim Wenders film. “Comfortable Conversation” and “Civil Servant Awakening” balance it all out with a post-punk, monotonous vibe akin to The Fall or Joy Division.
To truly enjoy Bonnie’s State Of Mind for what it is, you must have patience for experimentalism, something that Freak Heat Waves do very well. An extraterrestrial, futuristic take on the past, and a must-listen for the freak inside all of us.
Rating: ★★★★ (out of five)
