My dad gives the best sex talks. When I was in first or second grade and my GPA started slipping, he would assume or maybe hope, it was because I was thinking of girls. So, he would yell at me and ground me. But, my room had a VCR and he would have me go to the local video store to rent movies like “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” or make me read “Catcher in the Rye.” And these were the places I learned about sex, love and desire. What I learned was that these things, which are so powerful, destructive and cheap, are undeniable aspects of life that are so terrifying that it’s pretty much a joke that it makes people do ridiculous things. I swear, these were the conclusions I reached by about fifth grade when I watched “Boogie Nights.” That’s why Hecuba’s brand new LP “Paradise” is probably my favorite of the year so far. Their music captures perfectly, the soul in love, the body in lust and the broken heart. It’s sincere yet self-aware and willing to make fun of the very thing that motivates the album.
I’ve had the privilege of seeing this band several times and have even talked to them. They have made it perfectly clear that the kind of music they dig is the over sentimentality of The Cure, who they cover, and the cheesiness of Prince. Now, while Hecuba’s music isn’t quite as intricate as a Prince solo or as epic as The Cure’s seven-minute intros, they implement some interesting sound effects and italo-disco beats that could potentially blow your mind if you are listening with a decent pair of headphones while drinking beer. The synthesizers have hella sawtooth wave business that go back and forth and every which way, forcing your head to spin just to keep up with the songs. But it remains relatively simple and pleasant so everyone can partake in a quick bump session.
Overall, the album is about the usual hubbub of falling in love, breaking up and sexual suggestion. At the same time, it is hesitant to go too far or to be too stupid. It’s like when you’ve already “fallen in love” 10 times in the past six months. Sure, you’re passionate and sensitive, but you’ve had your heart broken and broken hearts yourself. You’ve fallen in love with a one night stand and thought of her every night as you go to bed with the girlfriend you just moved in with, only to walk in on her with your best friend. But, by god, you’re a romantic. You need someone to hold you at night. So you “go out to the club because music doesn’t care,” because, like meth, music and love are cheap if you know where to look.
Like in the album’s first and best single “Suffering,” complete with heavy breathing, grunts and saxophone serenade, in chorus, the band asks, “Do you need somebody? Do you love somebody? Do you love somebody? Is that somebody?” They stop and just look away from the lead singer before he can fully embarrass himself by asking if you love him (watch the music video). But the next track rebuts with Isabelle just telling him through a sexy vocoder that he doesn’t need to sing to her, he just needs to sleep with her as the album breaks down into smooth jazz.