Album Review: Parts of Speech’ Floyd Biz

Parts of Speech is the Kansas City duo Brandon Knocke (vocals, keyboards, programming) and Alexander Thomas (acoustic/electronic drums). They got their downtempo electro groove started in 2009. Their cautious compositions result in tame yet dour melodies. The cover art of their recent album, Floyd Biz, features the very living room the duo recorded. All the instruments were video recorded live by the California-based artist Max Capacity. From this VHS tape the live-audio was then processed, adding in the small keyboarding and vocals were layered over the music. These hipsters just keep inventing stranger and stranger ways to record an album.

adjective: A conditional word couldn’t describe the new single, “Taste Comfort,” nor any slue of superlative phrases, however common or exaggerated, like the climax of a mystery novel.

adverb: The modification of sounds, like verbs and adjectives suites the juxtaposing images and influences on the opening track, “Canopy.” The moaning distortions and crisp clash of synthetic harmony is sublime.

article: “ABC Island,” harps off Daft Punk, Tron buildups with Coldplay vocals. Any of three words used to signal the presence of this indefinitely melodic track would fall short. Thought the vocals fall flat and blur with the rest of the album, the opening of this song is worth the rest.

conjunction: Divisively amassing yet simultaneously conjoining, “Electric Lime Timeless” offers a quiet disco, and cool-jazz sax.

interjection: “My goodness,” might be exactly the phrase you’d consider when listening to “Hidden Pigeon,” reminiscent of Dredge’ 2006 classic, “Same Ol’ Road.”

noun: “Moon Bear Prayer,” sings like a string of names, places and things.

preposition: Like the indicator and its relationship to the noun, “Town in the Crescent” is a sensual and collect song that’ll definitely lull you to bed with its R & B meets chillwave seduction.

pronoun: No substitutions come to mind when trying to capture the potential and promise of the album Floyd Biz.

verb: Homegrown and homemade synths are all there is to the rising electro stars Parts of Speech.