The Avalanches, the iconic Australian duo of James De La Cruz and Peter Whitford, have returned with their first solo single in 10 years. They had released ‘Don’t Forget Your Neighborhood’ and ‘All You Children’ in recent years, but with collaborations from Cola Boyy and Jamie xx. ‘Together’ is the Song of the Day.
It was impossible to guess what sound The Avalanches would choose to present their next album, which has not been confirmed yet, but ‘Together’ makes it very clear. The Australian duo embraces glitch and electronic pop in their new single, which at the same time draws on the nostalgia of 2000s technology.
The first thing we hear in the song is the double click of a mouse and the very mythical Nokia startup sound, which in this first part is exploited quite a bit, finally incorporating itself into the melody. The base, full of electronic details, is experimental, innocent and beautiful at the same time. Nokia isn’t the only brand featured in the song, with the duo sampling a Toshiba advert from the ’80s as a transition.
In this second part, Jessy Lanza, author of ‘Love Hallucination’, sings about a “new soul” that is “growing” inside her while she wonders where “my love” went. In this section, the beat is filled with arpeggios and melodies, while the sounds of cameras taking photos follow one another in a chaotic manner. The song maintains a perfect balance between the playful nature of its concept and what we all want in a great song. They have certainly been worth all these years.
