There are Eighties flashbacks aplenty in the second album from Brooklyn-quartet Selebrities, whose finely-honed expression of new-wave, nu-disco synth-pop keep bringing flickering scenes of late-night mopey teenage-laments to my mind — the kinds to be found in a John Hughes-style film, or something of that sort. Though deviating little in style, Lovely Things is an impressionistic work of delicate electronica, refracting wistful vocals and synths through its modern revivalist lens to achieve a mellow, eighties cinema-worthy beauty.
Over sedated pads come the piercing downward rays of dreamy eighties synths as light, feminine vocals that seem somehow too gauzy to be natural physically, but which are emotionally undressed and vulnerable, lead us into the atmospheric angst that is Lovely Things. With its reminiscent guitar riffs, “Temporary Touch” is quite radio-friendly, but its delicate facade and groovy underside mark it for something more unique. Bugling basses and bright-synth pulses play beguilingly against the lyrical emo-pain of “Baroque,” while “Wither Away” takes you into a dark spin, spewing lines of adolescent insecurity at you in its chambered confine of driving guitar, swimming synths and ominously chiming bells.
Punkish riffs lay the groundwork for the infectious discombobulation of “Lovers” and “Born Killers,” while “You’re Gone” and “Forged to be Broken” both swoop down into a softer and slower melancholic yearning. The closing track “I Could Change” picks back up with driving drums and spraying synths. “Whoever you may be,” croons the vocalist with romantic protest, “just let me stay and breathe.” A teenage mantra if I’ve ever heard one — and a perfect encapsulation of the mood for which this music was made.
