(interview I did for LadyGunn Magazine around 10 years ago -- it's laughably over the top as most of my "editorials" were then *sigh*)
Only 3 years after exploding onto the indie scene with their chart-topping debut album Pickin’ Up The Pieces, Los Angeles-based sextet Fitz & The Tantrums have given us another high-octane album full of genre-defying gems on More Than Just A Dream. Laced with raw energy and a contemporary sonic force that bids you to jump up and dance, this album fuses a kaleidoscope of sounds into a bold pop punch that sends you reeling, and coming back for more.
“We always envision our music as a celebration,” says frontman Michael “Fitz” Fitzpatrick, donning a shiny, fitted black suit and sunglasses, looking ready to party. “The first record was 60’s Motown soul in the foreground and 80’s new wave in the background, and then a third layer of a little indie and hip hop. On this record, we kind of reversed it where the 80s influence and the indie are more in the foreground, but 60s soul is still there. For people that loved the first record, there’re still a ton of songs that are the through-line from the last record to this record, and then we’ve just gone to these new places.”
New places is an understatement. The only rule on this album is that there are no rules, and the hybrid of styles and sounds that should repel each other ultimately cohere in vibrant harmony. Songs like the exhilaratingly catchy first single, “Out of My League” brim with the soul and vivacity that translates into their famed live shows.
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