Pete Fij and Terry Bickers - never heard? Well, if you are a close follower of all things music, particularly the late Eighties and early Nineties British scene, you probably have, or at least, should have. Peter Fij (or more precisely Fijalkowski) was the lead singer of a quite underrated band Adorable and Terry Bickers, came up with all those nice guitar licks on House of Love songs, as he used to be that band’s lead guitarist. We Are Millionaires is the duo’s second album (the debut, Broken Heart Surgery came out in 2014), and maybe it is the time that a larger audience starts noticing them.
Maybe the striking album cover depicting a car graveyard somewhere in Belgium could help, because, in a way, it precisely depicts the mood of this album - forlorn, melancholic, but definitely not beaten or lost. Love can definitely get down, but there is always hope, that seems to be the message the duo is trying to convey. Of course, it has been done a thousand times before, but if it is done well, one more will definitely not hurt but can definitely help to soothe the mind and soul.
Musically, it is great territory of soundtrack music along the lines of what Angelo Badalamenti did for the first series of Twin Peaks, a bit of a hark back to Roy Orbison or the great Lee Hazelwood (both musically and lyrically), or in more modern terms, something along the lines their compatriot Richard Hawley has been doing so well. And Fij & Bickers are in no way lagging behind on We Are Millionaires. It is an album of slow, gentle atmospheres than never loses its focus or meanders into mundane. Just gentle reminiscing music about lost loves and aftermaths. Also, Fij & Bickers didn’t just put in ‘lost love’ lyrics as an afterthought, but as something that can draw a wry smile of comparison.
Is We Are Millionaires an epochal musical discovery? No, but so what? It is a good album, worth those mellow moments it evokes and should give the duo more prominence these two guys deserve.
