A is for Alpine

Source: Frankie magazine (issue 44)

A is for Alpine and astounding. We’re not talking about the mountain—Alpine is an electropop sextet Melbourne band with two frontwomen, Phoebe Baker and Lou James, bringing the gentle but cold breezy voices that are emblematic of the band’s trait. Alongside with the singers are Christian O’Brien (guitar), Ryan Lamb (bass), Timothy Royall (keyboards), and Phil Tucker (drums); who work solidly in creating the synth character of Alpine.

The name of the band insinuates something that is related to Europe—or Switzerland. Their bond with the country seems even more prominent; the band was once called “The Swiss” and they even released an EP on 2010 titled Zurich. Although Alpine associates with the infamous frigid snow-coated mountain, Baker admits in an interview, “When I think of Alpine I think of this kind of fresh clean beauty which kind of reminds me of…not fresh like zesty…more like how you feel as if you have just had a nice swim.”

Their debut album, A Is for Alpine that was recently released on August 10, practically proves what the frontwoman says. It is fresh, smooth, clean, and rejuvenating. With a nice casual tempo (like a synchronised swimming), most songs are dominated with crisp guitar riffs. It is quite mild and not as loud as Zurich. However, A Is for Alpine doesn’t stir up sentimentality because the drumbeats are danceable.

Baker and James’ vocals give the band a signature. Despite their passionless vocals, oddly enough these have captivated the listeners; such as Hands with its unique swinging vocals and Lovers 1’s breathy vocals.

Furthermore, there’s nothing quirkier than the lyrics themselves. The typical of Alpine is their reverberant lyrics. There aren’t any clear distinctions between the verses and the refrains. Some songs even have meager sentences that couldn’t be identified as the verse. And they're also ambiguous, like in Gasoline and Hands ("There's gasoline in your eye" // "It's OK to feel the ring on my hands, my love, my enemy"). Almost as ambiguous as the lyrics is Hands’ risqué video clip which shows young women in skimpy outfits kissing their own hands.

The album itself

Nonetheless, it seems Alpine has learned from their previous EP, Heartlove, to repair their dictions in this album; recalling the moment when people argued on YouTube over the real lyrics (fans listened "I love catfood tonight" whereas the real lyric was "prowl like a cat through the night").

These factors (reverb vocals, ambiguousness, articulation) are again that charm people. It's either bland-emotionless or zestful-invigorating, depends on the listeners. At one point, though, the reverb vocals become addictive. Then again, who cares of ambiguousness and articulation if the music beats could lift you from your seats? A Is for Alpine provides the likeness of Zurich for fans; nevertheless it serves an outlandish flavour for Australia. Just as Paul LEster from the Guardian says, "Hands down the best Aussie band we've heard all year."