WHITE – One Night Stand Forever

The debut album from Glasgow five-piece WHITE, One Night Stand Forever (not to be confused with the Ed Ruscha painting of the same name) is a raucous riot of disco-tinted post-punk, something you might not have heard in a long time. Indeed, to be making a record with guitars feels quite radical at a time when pop music comes in the guise of warped EDM and dance music is enjoying a central position in alternative subcultures.

WHITE’s originality is ironic given that their signature sound is heavily inspired by previous decades, with a cursory listen bringing to mind the likes of ABC, Franz Ferdinand and even Talking Heads. However they steer clear of pastiche, thanks in part to a potent combination of pithy humour and exuberant energy. The vocals offered by frontman Leo Condie are also vital to asserting the band’s individual identity. Condie’s versatile, elastic voice takes the music in unexpected directions with his throaty croon shifting suddenly to a squealing high note.

One Night Stand Forever is an album that, despite all the smoke and mirrors of theatricality, talks straight to you. WHITE take the universal, much-discussed topics of sex and love and created ten eclectic and honest tracks in response. Most notably, I Liked You Better When You Needed Me and This is Not a Love Song document the downs of relationships and break-ups with verve, rather than falling back on soppy platitudes. Another winning point are the sparks of lyricism that unexpectedly appear in catchy, upbeat tracks; for example, BLUSH's line ’You’re dredging up desires/ looking for adulation’.

All in all, WHITE deliver an impressive, infectious debut album, and prove that they can sustain the high-octane sound of their previous singles on a long-play format.

Listen to: I Liked You Better When You Needed Me, BLUSH