Joy Electric
The Ministry of Archers
Tooth & Nail
Ripped from the ’80s new wave handbook, Joy Electric’s The Ministry of Archers is composed entirely of vocals, moog synthesizer and analogue sequencer. A one-man-show, Ronnie Martin fashions together songs alternating between a bouncy post-punk beat and cool calm aloofness. His melodies are strong throughout the album, though the disc suffers from a transitory air, where few of the tracks carry enough weight to be remembered beyond their closing second. His lyric subject matter, while delivered in a brooding tone, comes up light on substance, but as with most dance music, once the beat lures kids onto the floor, keeping them there isn’t such an intellectual feat. It seems like the indie scene has moved past this kind of melodramatic electro-pop. High quality as it is, sacrificing some of the sheen for a little extra flair or eclecticism would’ve made the disc more memorable.
Tooth & Nail Records: http://www.toothandnail.com
