Telefon Tel Aviv "Helen of Troy"

• Words: Lulu McAllister
• Label: BPitch Control

New Orleans-based duo Telefon Tel Aviv has signed to BPitch Control and will release its third official full-length, Immolate Yourself, on January 20, 2009. This album–their first in five years–is made almost entirely with analog synths, due to the band's growing disinterest in guitars.

The tense opening chord of “Helen of Troy” hangs menacingly above crisp percussion until plunky new-wave synths rush in like a breaking rain shower. Timid vocals from bandmates Charles Cooper and Joshua Eustis waft into the storm and blossom harmoniously, growing warmer still into a glowing, infectious pop chorus. Just as your mind begins to crave another round of retro melodic crooning, the song comes to an end. If this sounds good to you, catch them on tour this fall with Ghostly’s Matthew Dear. Lulu McAllister