Theo Hutchcraft. Adam Anderson. Dark suits. Slick, oiled hair. A transcendent voice backed by a monstrosity of synthetic sound. Everywhere they go, things happen in slow motion. I cannot begin to surmise whether they are time travelers or gods. We would never be able to tell the difference anyway.
Hurts' first public offering, Happiness, is the fastest-selling UK debut of 2010. They embark on a sold-out UK tour in a few days, followed by Europe. They have already upgraded a few venues, and more are sure to follow.
Theo and Adam are here, if anything, to signal the end of the 80s revival. Not because anyone killed it, but because no one could ever best them at this. This isn't really the end though - it's just the point where things change from 80s revival to second wave synthpop and...whatever we decide to call the new wave of new wave.
Now, I'm still fairly new to writing reviews, but I have learned that there are two ways I can go from here - I can tell you more about the music, in far more spoiling words than you care to read, or I can spend paragraph after paragraph comparing them to bands you have never heard of. Neither direction will be of much use to anyone besides another music critic, so I'll try something new.
I heard a new sound.I literally just went with the first random idea that came to mind after I wrote “so I'll try something new”. So there it is—a series of haikus, expressing what I see and hear when I close my eyes and listen to Hurts' unimaginably perfect album.
It was like a moonlit night,
Blinded by stormclouds.
It hurts to listen.
We're all illuminated,
Burning from inside.
The smokescreen rises,
Melancholy eyes concealed,
Yet I hear his voice.
I am not done, yet.
Leave me with the medicine.
Don't you understand?
Leave it unspoken.
I will never change your mind.
Take me now, safely.
Nothing happens once.
But it's over, much too soon.
Press play to repeat.
Hurts - Better Than Love
Hurts - Wonderful Life
Hurts - Illuminated (Live music video)
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