Friendly Fires haven’t released an album since 2011’s Pala, a triumphant Eighties pastiche full of big choruses, Tears for Fears soundalikes, and brilliant, full-throated wailing from frontman Ed Macfarlane. After a lengthy hiatus, Inflorescent, the band’s third album, does feel like a progression – only not quite as far-reaching as you would imagine. Rather than imitating 2011, Inflorescent instead brings to mind the summer of 2013, overwhelmed as it is by a neutered disco-funk sound reminiscent of Daft Punk’s inescapable “Get Lucky”. Only rarely as catchy.
Which isn’t to say Inflorescent is a complete wash. Standouts include “Offline”, which is lifted straight from “Outside”-era George Michael, “Sleeptalking”, a shimmering house track full of minimalist 1990s synths, and “Lack of Love”, which sounds like something left off a Hot Chip album from 2009. But while there are some interesting sounds here and there, the overriding feeling is of a more club-friendly Take That, full of trumpets, saxophones and odd smooth-jazz flourishes.
Friendly Fires have never wanted to fit in with trends, making catchy indie dance-pop even when Razorlight were busy appearing on the covers of NME every other week. But as it continues, Inflorescent becomes less an act of creative daring, and more a case of “who is this even for?”
