It has been some years since I last heard Faunch, reviewing the first two albums back in 2017, but producer and sometime bandmate Michael McClure got in touch with me recently and sent me the next seven, so am working through then in release sequence and it has certainly provided me with quite an insight into the mind of Andy Faunch as he is way more diverse than I had imagined. ’80 Spheres’ was released in 2020 and finds Andy utilizing some of the synth sounds from the early 80’s, from the likes of Emulator, Fairlight & Sequential Circuits. He commences with “Meg Ryan Smile” which could be classic Talking Heads before moving into the female-led “Music Is The Engine” which reminded me of the early Eighties scene which had me reaching for NWOBHM as a way of washing out my ears. Surely it could not stay like this?
The short answer is both no and yes, as for the rest of the album I felt I had been taken back in time and Thompson Twins were in the house, a band I had not thought of (or heard) in more than four decades. Honestly, this is music which could easily have come from that period, but there is also an evil sense of humour going on as well. There is a track here called “Coventry”, where Andy and Tiffany Tallarino sing in the chorus “Don’t send me to Coventry”. Not only is Coventry a city in the midlands of England, but the saying of sending someone to Coventry means literally not to speak to them (apparently dating from the English Civil War), so it is a dual meaning which will probably go right over the heads of many.
This is not my personal style of music, and is not something I will ever play again, but there is no doubt this 9 track 41-minute album is an accurate portrayal of a pop world from the past which many enjoyed. If you want to be taken back in time then listen to Andy’s “spin from today to the sounds we dug back then, echoing back to our bumping times on The Sunset Strip, even though I’ve lost most of the hair & the pants would be too tight.” So would the next album be a continuation of the same?
Rating: 7/10
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Links:
https://faunch.bandcamp.com/