I had never heard of beigeGT before their album Cue arrived in my letter box. Admittedly, I’m usually quite sceptical of why I’ve never heard of the band, as though it has something to do with the quality of the music. Often, this is true, and there might just be a good reason they’ve remained in obscurity until the point of my hearing of them. However, beigeGT are a bit of a hidden treasure. The lads from Denmark are certainly a unique bunch of musicians – their record label says that beigeGT consists of “punks, guitar pop artists and minimalist techno guys”.
You can tell.
Band conquers dancefloor. Or: we don’t need your machines. We have better ones. beigeGT still have the ability to generate emotions with instruments.
(Taken from the blurb on the back of the album).
This is a fair statement. They are certainly unique, at times sounding like The Hives, then like Placebo, then some weird bleepy-buzzy electro-rock fusion. They indeed claim that it is no longer possible to separate rock from disco – a claim that I’m sure the likes of The Strokes would refute, but anyhow – and for this band at least, the fusion is boldly evident. As musicians, the band are proficient and their range is broad; if anything, it could be the vocals that let them down a little, coming across a little too punk for the music at times. In saying that, though, it contributes yet another slice of individuality to this band - as if they didn’t have enough already.
The standout moment of Cue comes in the form of Menthol, a five minute experimental instrumental extravaganza, the sound of which goes from indie to country to funky and back again, fusing fast drums, catchy, melodic guitars and random beeps to top it all off. FAQ, a sort of Franz Ferdinand-meets-The Hives journey into the world of indie-punk one can dance to, is another highlight of the album, as is Aim, a track reminiscent of the days of Britpop gone by.
At times, beigeGT’s style is quite cute and catchy; at others, it is just plain strange – see album closer Iowa (I’m not sure whether I’m reading too far into things, but could the death metal roar that opens the track be a nod to Iowa natives Slipknot?). I couldn’t find out a lot about the band – most of the websites about them were in another language, so I had no way of gauging their popularity overseas. But they’re a good band with a unique sound – something valuable in a world of sheep and mimics. Cue is an intriguing, confusing, exciting album, and definitely worth a listen.
