From Iceland — Few More Days To Go

Published December 10, 2015

Fufanu evolved out of Captain Fufanu, a two-piece techno production team that rose to prominence in Reykjavík’s electro scene at the beginning of the decade. Opting to ditch the mixing deck for a backing band, Fufanu churn out sparse, distorted post-punk on their debut LP, ‘Few More Days To Go’. The supply of angular, droning rock music has been sparse of late, and as a result Fufanu sound quite fresh in certain parts of the album—despite being decidedly retro. Mid-album track “Blinking,” particularly, comes off as something the Velvet Underground would have jotted down in their more heroin-soaked years, with lead singer Kaktus Einarsson’s dripping drawl pointedly leading the rest of the band into the gloom. The remnants of Fufanu’s past lives as electronic musicians give the album a certain edge, however it turns out that there is such a thing as too good a Peter Murphy impersonation, and songs like “Circus Life,” which laments that “a circus job is a circus life,” can get a little bogged down in the emotional mire.

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With rare exceptions, few bands have sincerely attempted to resurrect proto-goth musical aesthetics, and for that Fufanu should be applauded. “Plastic People” has a determined hint of Gary Numan, all robotic paranoia and shuddering synthesizers. It has the desired effect, and demonstrates a direction that Fufanu will hopefully follow as they release more music: thrilled, stuttering, slightly scary and scared.