The Asteroids Galaxy Tour
Fruit
Small Giants
out October 27th
52/100
[Rating Scale]

The Asteroids Galaxy Tour’s undeniably catchy debut LP, Fruit lingers in the head with a horn-filled, psychedelic pop “who cares?” Whether channeling a spayed Gwen Stefani, a boring and cuddly Kathleen Hannna or a flaccid Billie Holiday, Mette Lindberg’s voice ranges from pleasantly poppy to gratingly shrill baby talk. Place this atop a consistent bed of repetitive mediocrity and the result is both a nice pop record — which many people will love — and a migraine waiting to happen.

Fruit is either a study in abrasion without interest, punk without drama or straight faced faux-soul pop, the likes of which Amy Winehouse (for whom the band opened while she was in Denmark) has been parading around in front of an oddly complicit audience for the last few years. Worse than Winehouse though, Lindberg seems to have nothing of note to say, no axe to grind, no lyrical backbone to speak of and a lesser sense of composition. The horns throughout the album are truly a nice touch, and the most interesting musical element of Fruit, but do not do enough to distinguish themselves from the squishy arrangements and undercooked organ parts that characterize the feel. Contrast this to the tight, big band horn hits found in Winehouse’s hits, and it is clear why one group was the opener and the other the headliner. Continue reading →