Persil: Comfort Noise

Persil is from Amsterdam and blends pop with various other effects, samples and loops. Getting off to a very good start with the bubble gum power pop number “Light Up My Life”, Persil doesn’t sound mechanical at all, even if the dreamy, mid-tempo “Vox” has more electronic elements, including an effective militaristic backbeat. The joyous wall of guitar is what brings it all together. Singer Martine’s sweet timbre is also an asset, as the band drives headlong into a slow-building and gear-shifting “Feet”. Persil occasionally misses the mark, as it does with “Arkadelphia”, which might be better suited on Bowie’s Outside album, or on some Elastica b-side compilation. Fans of Imogen Heap would take to “Alice Austen” and its opening, before the group moves into a rocky, radio-friendly format. A better take on this blueprint has to be the hook-riddled and punchy “Hipper”, which is indeed hipper. Even the lighter, flighty tunes such as “More Special Days” have grooves that are difficult to pass on. Martine shines during “Dance to This!” and “PS”, which have a lot in common with the Cure in its softer moments.