Korine
A Flame in the Dark
Born Losers Records
Korine occupy an interesting corner of the broader synthpop/new wave revival movement; the Philadelphia based duo of Morgy Ramone and Trey Frey have successfully invoked both wistful melancholia and youthful hope in their songs, pulling in elements from darkwave and pop-punk for flavour. Their latest, A Flame in the Dark, is an interesting quantity in their catalogue, not peaking as high as previous records, but showing stronger songcraft overall across the album.
The issue with the two proceeding LPS from the band (The Night We Raise and Tear) was that their best songs made the surrounding cuts less memorable. Damnably catchy, instantly memorable cuts like “Burn the World”, or “Fate, or “Train to Harlem” made it hard to give the rest of their material a fair shake. A Flame in the Dark might lack earworms of the calibre of those cuts, but the floor for songwriting and performance has come up considerably.
A cut like “Blue Star” is a perfect case in point, balancing post-punk bass and bright synthwork with a nuanced vocal from Morgy, hitting the mark between hopeful keening and mopeyness with aplomb. Arrangements remain straightforward, but are cannily tuned in service to songs with breakdowns and transitions creating more movement and dynamics than ever before; note the variation in the vocal line on the first and second verses of “Twist the Knife” that reflect the punchiness of the chorus, and how “The Line” confidently stays at a slower tempo to really let it big feelings come across.
Better songcraft might seem like a poor trade for the mega-hooks that built Korine’s following, but it ultimately benefits the listening experience a great deal. In isolation a single like “Anhedonia” is a solid cut, but in the context of the variety and shape of the record its speedy rhythm programming and sing-songy melody elevate the surrounding cuts, creating more movement, more contrast and a more complete album experience. If (like this reviewer) you had Korine pegged as a singles band with okay albums, then A Flame in the Dark might require you to recalibrate your listening – those that do will find charms aplenty to enjoy.
