World, You Need To Dance

Electronic acts always fall between “dance your butt off” and “soundtrack to your dreams.” Groups like Justice, Daft Punk, and Cassius mix a certain blend of funk/house rather than the repetitive “oontz oontz” of modern dance music. Adam Bainbridge, aka Kindness, fits snugly in between the French masters. World, You Need a Change of Mind is a testament to electronic dance music that’s thoughtful, energetic, and filled with pop sensibility.

The album starts of with “SEOD,” an ode to sparkly 80s pop mixed with chillwave drone. Bainbridge throws in some sax, piano, and sexy basslines – not unlike M83’s popular summer hit, “Midnight City.”

“Anyone Can Fall In Love” and “Gee Up” are straight throwbacks to early 70s Motown and so-called “sweet soul.” “Gee Up” boasts a thick, creamy bassline ready for the Jackson Five to choreograph to. Bainbridge’s whispery vocals seem somewhat similar to most chillwave artists, but it works. It’s fun. That’s all that matters.

“That’s Alright” is a world of sound. Sporting the same instrumentation of sax and sexy bassline, but this time around, a sharp snare accompanies the deep kick. Basically, this track is a dancer’s delight.

The album ends with “Doigsong,” a fun, peppy disco track that is reminiscent of early 2000s dance-punk/electroclash. Snappy guitar upstrokes and a bouncy bassline color this piece with enough fierce energy, it doesn’t matter that Bainbridge breaks it down to almost a full stop with him repeating, “that’s between us,” over and over again. It works.

World, You Need a Change of Mind is on the border of brilliant and “been done before.” Of course, sometimes, doing what others have strived to perfect isn’t bad. It’s a compliment to the sounds and beats that made the world move, made the world dance. That’s all that really matters, really. Maybe, the world doesn’t need a change of mind; it just needs something to dance to.