It ain’t easy to make a decent living these days, but it is easy to ride the indie success wave from Britain to America – and the members of Hard-Fi can attest to both.
The quartet makes its American debut with Stars of CCTV, an album that has garnered much recognition as yet another energetic and punk-inspired act coming out of the UK.
Melodic and stylish, Hard-Fi utilizes many of same techniques as their fellow indie-rock Brits. But like much of the genre these days, Hard-Fi doesn’t carry quite the same weight as some of its recent predecessors such as Franz Ferdinand or The Killers. Standout “Hard to Beat” is a ’70s style dance track, heavy on the keyboard and a fun listen, but it hardly stands up to Franz Ferdinand’s breakout “Take Me Out.”
While Hard-Fi provides nothing new, Stars of CCTV still delivers. The album flows extremely well, smoothly transitioning from disco pop to the piano-ballad “Move on Now,” and then into the reggae-style, mid-tempo “Better Do Better,” which picks up steam. There’s energy, melody, rhythm and a formula fit for radio repeat. And that British accent! It gets ya every time.
What stands out most is the down-to-earth lyrics. Focusing on the working-class style of living, lead singer Richard Archer introduces us to his British street origins with topics including crime, girls, drinking and minimum salaries.
The opening track, “Cash Machine,” sets the lyrical subject matter with “I scratch a living, it ain’t easy/You know it’s a drag/ I’m always paying, never make it.” Archer, on the danceable “Living for the Weekend,” continues his explanation with “Working all the time, work is such a bind/Got some money to spend, living for the weekend.” The issue of crime, “You can’t hold down a job, so then you had to rob,” is featured on “Feltham Is Singing Out.” And “Gotta Reason” is all about getting a girl: “You can make it all worth while, I like your face girl, I like your style.”
But perhaps the most important song lyrically is the title track. CCTV (closed circuit television) is a system of monitored security cameras used especially for catching criminals in Britain – the kind of political issue your typical indie pop band would not approach.
In short, Hard-Fi is the working man’s dance music. Incorporating occasional two-tone beats and catchy repetitive hooks into its poetic plea for a better life, Hard-Fi delivers an album any poor college student can appreciate. For fans of the genre, Stars of CCTV definitely won’t disappoint.
– By Adam Z. Winer
