The new record from Hectorine is a bit of an outlier in the current wave of bands from the Bay Area. Where those favor jangle-pop or shoegaze forms, Sarah Gagnon as Hectorine veers more clearly into an art rock lane. The new Hectorine album, Arrow of Love is closer to late period Roxy Music than it is to early Ride, is what I'm saying.
The excellent "Is Love an Illusion?" opens things, Sarah's Annie Lennox-like delivery pushing the melody forward on smart synth patterns. Even better is "Everybody Says", a stately near-march, where Gagnon's voice finds moments of release in a down-tempo gem that recalls, for me at least, solo Bryan Ferry efforts from the Eighties. The sharp "No Hallelujah" provides sage counterpoint to the Leonard Cohen classic. "Heart of Stone" loosens things up a bit, adding a more upbeat and catchy hook under Sarah's vocals.
The majority of Arrow of Love is kind of austere. There's little fluff here, and Hectorine offers up music here that is shorn of wasted elements. The pieces are accentuated by synths and guitars but, for the most part, this is a very introspective record. At the risk of repeating myself, I do think it's worth stressing how much this reminded this listener of side two of Avalon -- Hectorine even has a song called "Take a Chance on Me" on this side two too! -- or parts of Bryan Ferry's Boys and Girls. Imagine those releases with Annie Lennox singing and you've got a good idea of what makes this Hectorine album so compelling in a similar fashion.
Arrow of Love by Hectorine is out now via Take a Turn Records. Details below.
[Photo: Take a Turn Records]