Unbeknown to many, the spirit of post-midnight electro pop survives in the myriad back alleys of dreary old Englandshire and, while Englandshire is indeed the dreariest of places, said electro pop is not and Betari’s Box lock and load their self-titled EP to provide evidence of just that.
As you might expect of such heavily sequenced music, the pace verges on the relentless with each of the five songs racing at you like a cute puppy determined to please you. That is perhaps something of an oversimplification for while the threesome that make up Betari’s Box approach their task with something akin to glee – oh Strawberry Switchblade where art thy incessant happiness now? – the underlying lyrical trend is definitely towards the bleak backrooms of the arthouse. Take the literate walk and talk that weaves between the beat on “Whip” as an example. That song is more than mere candyfloss for the dance floor. Similarly, “Crooked Lines” shows that Betaris’s Box can play the lost in the eighties card like true professionals whilst still sounding so fresh that they could be a freshly baked pastiche.
When it comes down to it, Betari’s Box are more than just another slice of retro cake and, as this EP finished its tour of duty on the CD player, I found myself hungering for more of their home baked electro pop.
The EP is available for download from Bandcamp and also as a CD.