Pigeon - OUTTANATIONAL (Memphis 
Industries)
Release Date: Out Now
I have been extoling the virtues of Margate's hottest properties Pigeon to anyone who will listen (and many who simply won't) for months now but I feel like I've levelled up with their debut album. 'OUTTANATIONAL' is a ear-catching and exhilarating debut which, when dropped into any social situation (funerals and court cases aside) can only help to improve the mood. The album swings into action with 'NRG', a five minute odyssey of afrobeat, electro fun, and rhythms that builds into something of a musical monolith calling all followers to worship. Former single 'Black James Dean' picks up the baton and runs with it, giving frontman Falle Nioke space to let his vocal trills and thrills roam without impingement.
'Miami' is a slice of indie-electro that will live inside your brain for weeks if you're anything like me - you'll find yourself whisper singing "M-I-A-M-I, going to Miami" in the strangest of situations. On 'Horse With A Blind', the band embrace the rhythms in percussion, vocals, and the afro-guitars to make a song feels like a bottle of fizzy drink gradually letting all the bubbles burst. '117' takes the rhythmic theme on but layers up some 80s synths to create a sound that defies genre or, ironically, pigeon holing while 'Mirror Test' is a strutting kraut-disco number with elements of Sparks, Franz Ferdinand, Kraftwerk, and 70s New York.
At this point you realise that this album has created a musical soundscape that you're just wandering around with a mix of bewilderment and awe. 'Hype Prototype' throbs and pulsates with an electro reggae energy before 'Future Country' has an angular and unhinged heart that I feel David Bowie would have nodded approvingly to. Penultimate track 'Today Is Another Day' shows a more soulful side to Nioke's vocal as the bass takes the lead in nudging forwards with an almost weary energy but without any signs of giving up. 'Caramel' brings the album to a close with a woozy, late night vibe that lets you know the party is moving into a new phase now with the lights going down and the energy dropping.
This record certainly represents an incredibly impressive debut but, more than that, it lets you know that not only are bands still a very relevant entity, they are still out there creating sounds more interesting than lad rock or straight-up indie. A great album and an important one to boot!
More information: https://www.instagram.com/pigeonhaslanded/