Formed of various members of New Order, Devo and The Verve, ShadowParty's heritage is nothing if not inspirational. Musically, this self-titled debut leans towards the former's Siren's Call era, its side-project Bad Lieutenant and the most recent Music Complete, particularly on the opening "Celebrate" and the Euro-boogie of "Reverse The Curse" which also uncannily resembles "Shellshock" once the chorus kicks in.
Sadly, a swathe of the latter half of the album is a bit predictable and lacks the swagger of earlier tracks such as the string-tinged "Sooner or Later" and the sub-electro stomper "Present Tense", ably written by and sung by ACR's Denise Johnson. I'd love to hear Oakenfold and Osborne have a crack at the latter.
Overall, ShadowParty serves as an enjoyable enough listen.
Review by Paul Pledger
