With their debut album Happiness, British synth pop duo The Hurts have been come darlings of both the critics and the public. Theo Hutchraft and Adam Anderson have met in front of the club in Manchester and the legend says they were way to drunk to get involved in a fight their friends were having so they have started talking about music. The rest is a little history of success and interesting releases.
They are the pioneers of a music genre called disco lento. This ‘’invention’’ occurred when they formed their first band. As the name of the band changed to Hurts and the first album was on its way, they relied on that genre and the whole project sounded like a dedication to disco pop of the 80s.
Their third album Surrender does not fall away from the tree. Boys know what made them popular and they are following the formula. Lyrics are written by them, and they have even produced few songs. Synthpop with elements of new wave and disco pop makes the base. It seems like they have decided to speed up and create something more eclectic. I could smell Depeche Mode and New Order in my headphones.
Love discourse echoes all over. Surrender, wanting, unhappiness, problems, victory. On the other hand, in song like In Rolling Stone, they sing about a girl whose father was an alcoholic so she had to run away. It is socially sensitive story with feministic implications. Other socially engaging tracks include Weight Of The World and Policewoman, but love is always the matrix. Everything falling in love brings is turned to dance and fun tracks.
First part of the album is the strongest with singles Some Kind Of Heaven and Nothing Will Be Bigger Than Us. The end of the album is falling behind. I felt like they were losing energy. Ballades are redundant, such as Wish. I prefer when they stick to dance songs.
