Where’s The Magic –  Band of Gold (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

You have to love an album which comes at you like the future of pop music whilst effortlessly blending past golden ages and Where’s The Magic does all this and more. For every cutting edge synth line there is a funky groove, for every futuristic dream-pop vibe there is a jazz-soul heartbeat for every forward thinking idea there is a wonderful past reference. And I guess that is really how things get moved on. Musical revolutions are fine on paper, but they are more the stuff of journalistic copy than really changing the musical world. But blending the past with the present to usher in the future, that is actually where it is at…that is Where The Magic is.

There music is effortlessly accessible, songs such as I Wanna Dance With You Again being an instant future pop classic , the slow burning I Could Spot You In A Hundred Miles blending mercurial chamber-pop construction with strange infectiousness and the title track coming on like a long lost and wonderfully quirky Fleetwood Mac song.

And if the music is beguiling Nina Mortvedt’s vocals match it step for step. Able to wander between sweet soft-rock grandeur and underground pop cool, she lays down lyrics which are wonderfully introspective via a delivery which is rich, expressive and sensual. Put the two together and Band of Gold prove beyond doubt that the future of pop is in safe hands.