SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: DATAROCK – A FOOL AT FORTY IS A FOOL INDEED

Datarock
A Fool At Forty Is A Fool Indeed
YAP Records

Active since 2000, the Norway-based Datarock has had a high rotation in its lineup, but the founder and mainstay, Fredrik Saroea, has held the project together, releasing some pretty impressive albums. Ketil Mosnes (bass, keyboards, programming, backing vocals) has also been a member since the beginning. The name “Datarock” is apparently derived from the Norwegian word for “computer”, fitting since computers play an important role in the band’s music.

A Fool at Forty Is a Fool Indeed is Datarock’s fifth EP, and comes quickly on the heels of 2018’s Face the Brutality, its fourth studio album. Returning to an approach taken on earlier releases, Datarock shamelessly revisits the 1980s; these songs could easily have come from that era, and may even seem derivative on first impression, but they are not. The band refashions a genre and style on its own terms, and though the influences are obvious, they are all filtered through Datarock’s originality, creating a sound that would not be out of place in 1985.

This EP is a great deal of fun. Infectious melodies are paired with remarkably funny lyrics. For example, “Inside Out”, a great song about love and obsession, features some creative and unexpected ways of expressing desire. “You turn me inside out/Just like a bag through customs/Just like the cops when they bust them”, Saroea sings.

On the other hand, there are also songs like “The One”, which is actually quite heartbreaking and brings to mind “(Don’t You) Forget About Me” (not in style or even lyrics, but in spirit and emotion).

There are five new songs, plus several remixes, including DJ Rocca and Jukka’s stunning version of “Laugh in the Face of Darkness” from Face the Brutality. Though already a great song, the remix adds some new life and energy not entirely present in the original.

A Fool at Forty Is a Fool Indeed is a great EP, full of fun and memorable moments. Grab your red track suits, get comfortable, and dig the sounds these guys are producing.

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