Review: Miami Horror – We Always Had Tomorrow

Miami Horror’s long awaited third album We Always Had Tomorrow embraces the electronic group’s mellower, sadder side.

 

Around 2010, there was a glut of phenomenal electronic acts coming out of Australia. Just as LCD Soundsystem, the Rapture, and !!! had done in New York City during the mid-2000s, Australian bands like Bag Raiders, Cut Copy, Van She, Miami Horror, and PNAU (along with its more popular sister act, Empire of the Sun) combined synthpop, disco, house, and indie rock to create dance music that appealed to fans of both rock and electronica.

Aside from their shared Australian origin, the other uniting factor of these groups is that they’ve mostly mellowed out over the last 15 years, trading the four-on-the-floor beats and staccato synthesizer notes of early releases for more chilled out, introspective tracks. Miami Horror’s 2010 debut Illumination brimmed with disco revival tracks from start to finish, while its 2015 follow-up All Possible Futures spanned a range of genres and moods. A decade later, their long-awaited third album, We Always Had Tomorrow, continues this trend.

Unlike Miami Horror’s first two albums, We Always Had Tomorrow takes its time to get going. A beat only kicks in halfway through the opening track “Aurora/Dead Flowers,” a subtle one that matches the track’s mournful vocals. Its successor “Another Time” kicks things up a notch, and features the high-pitched synthesizer notes and piano chords you’d expect from Miami Horror. That said, the beat does cut out for a bit halfway through, and vocals from guest singer Woodes continue the album’s “chilled out” vibe. If you were a fan of the single “Real Slow” from All Possible Futures, you’ll appreciate these songs. Otherwise, you’ll be wondering when the party really starts.

It’s not until the album’s fourth track “Together” that We Always Had Tomorrow really grabs your attention, making you realize how critical a prominent bassline is to Miami Horror’s style. Think of how much the first track on All Possible Futures “American Dream” started the album on a high note the second its bass drops. Similarly, the bassline on “Glowin’” stands out with a funk-inspired groove that will remind you of Chromeo.  Once the album hits its stride, “Remember” is arguably its best track, bringing together disco strings, a great bass groove, a dance beat that really ups its intensity at the chorus, and solid vocals by Tim Ayre. It’s the closest the album gets to Miami Horror’s legendary track “Holidays” from Illumination.

After these more tried and true dance tracks, Miami Horror tries a few more novel styles on the album’s latter half. “Don’t Leave Me (In the Sunshine)” makes heavy use of a disco violin sample throughout, which combined with its flute note, lyrics, and “summer of love” pastiche make it oddly close to the Avalanches track “Sunshine” from their album Wildflower. If this track didn’t have original vocals by Tim Ayre, I’d wonder if they were deliberately trying to copy it. “We’re All Made of Stars” has a psychedelic feel to its synthesizers complemented by plucked electric guitar notes, and a beat that rivals any PNAU house track. It’s a very good song, but it could’ve been better if the beat didn’t only kick in during its choruses. The closing track “Lost Seasons” is the album’s most overt foray into synthpop, and while the instrumentals are good, its vocals don’t match their pep.

Once  We Always Had Tomorrow finished, my first thought was,  “is that it?” The album is 11 tracks and fewer than 40 minutes long, and when you factor in that three of its tracks are atmosphere-building interludes, there’s just over half an hour of actual music on it. This is basically half the length of All Possible Futures, which had a  long enough runtime to allow  more room for experimentation and contrasts. We Always Had Tomorrow is a little more consistent, in that it’s noticeably more restrained and frankly sadder in the lyrics department than the band’s first two albums. The band handles the tonal shift well, and the songs are generally well-done, but you might be disappointed there’s nothing nearly as energetic as earlier singles “I Look To You,” “Moon Theory,” “Love Like Mine,” or “Cellophane (So Cruel).”

Rating: 6.5/10