There are two kinds of electronic music projects: those with balls and those without. This isn’t a judgmental statement: there’s a time and a need for both types. Musical duo Loser Superhero boldly proclaims itself to be of the former variety. Despite the name of the album and most of the tracks, the act is French. Tres surprise! The difference between LS and other French electronic duo namedrops is that this one makes some genuinely good music when crafting its synth-sturdy fight anthems.
La Realidad y el Deseo isn’t the type of LP that slowly limbers forward, begging for attention. The aptly-named “Intro” takes a brief moment to collect itself with electronic strings and bass, then locksteps into a confident take on The Notwist - head-nodding instead of harsh. The track features a sweet mixture of instrumentation, shotgun vocal samples, and thudding bass. This is music best listened to in surround, which is perhaps why it earned the band a spot on Volume 5 of The Silent Ballet’s compilations series.
Unfortunately, this mixture can occasionally induce grimaces. Second track “La Pelicula de Nuestras Vidas” begins with a familiar combination of neu-French RQTN synthetic piano and mourning synth strings, and turns it into a farcical dance bash. While the beat is highly addictive, the operatic vocal samples turn the charade into something akin to a roadside auto accident: horrendous but attention-grabbing. On the other hand, there are songs on Justice and M83 albums that assault the listener with club girl hyper-femininity, but who among us hasn’t skipped to exactly those tracks with the car windows up?
“Le Retour Des Sirenes” proves an intense thrill when given time to age. The song builds quickly, but patiently, with electronics trading the spotlight with a piano backbone and the now familiar synthetic strings. It’s the track most likely to be embraced by the post-whatever crowd. Sirens begin littering the landscape while bass slowly nudges the track toward a wicked, glittering guitar wail. The song is an engaging six-minutes of hybrid instrumentation: a mash-up done right. Gorgeous.
The short album’s most powerful luminosity is found in its title track. “La Realidad y el Deseo” is as close of a battle between reality and desire that the Frenchmen could have hoped to imagine. LS perfects its use of operatic vocals here: a gradually building chorus combines with electric guitar to get one to the edge of one’s seat … and then drops out. A second passes before a guitar riff sprints toward a solid rhythmic beat, one that increases blood flow and dilates arteries. Music for fight clubs, as it were.
The album ends up being an incredible first listen and is worthy of repeats. Loser Superhero seems to make music for the underdog; it never broods, even in its quieter moments, but explodes when necessary. It isn’t without its faults, as the opera house shenanigans often demonstrate. However, the album does succeed in purveying a powerful mentality, pushed ferociously from its start by the two men pushing its pedals. This boldness is refreshing, and more of it is needed in this field.
-Brendan Kraft