The central point on the synth/guitar Venn diagram is in itself quite big, but the good bit is actually quite small. It shouldn't be controversial to say that opening up the traditional horizons is fraught with the dangers of spreading things too thin to actually make a difference or ladling it on so thick that there's no room to breathe.
Scores, a trio of friends from Los Angeles who decided to form a band during a backpacking trip through Europe, mostly get the balance right on Vol. 1, an album best understood by its analogues – 'Keep Yr Eyes Clsed' is as thrilling as the best parts of Public Service Broadcasting, driven not by esoteric samples but by a thunderous bassline, but 'Berlin Lines' could be an Everything Everything track that didn't make the cut.'Talk Flood' is a pitch-perfect take on the Daft Punk sound that is somehow tight and funky at the same time, taken up a level with a frantic saxophone wig-out that is just tremendous fun to listen to, and closing track 'B.A.R.S.' goes full digital, running with the bone-crunching synths of Justice for an anarchic conclusion to an otherwise fairly considered album.
This review isn't intended to just show off my record collection – what I'm getting at is how crowded that good bit of the Venn diagram already is. Scores are well worth their place, however, because while taking bits of everything they manage to just about elbow their way if not to the front, then certainly halfway there. The album title strongly suggests that there is more to come, and it will be fascinating to see if they can double down on what makes Scores, well, Scores and not just another Venn outlier.
Words - Joe Ponting
Scores official