The Ark blends glam rock, catchy melodies for a classic sound
By Lisa Wakeland, Staff Writer
March 2, 2007 | 6:57 p.m.
Hype surrounding the return of over-the-top glam rock with The Darkness' debut album may have faded with time, but The Ark's State of the Ark proves that dance rock is not dead.
Swedish five-piece The Ark made their Athens debut at the All-Campus Radio Network (ACRN) Muzak meeting last Wednesday. Record labels send dozens of albums to ACRN with hopes of getting their artists on the Internet radio station. Most CDs never make it past the preliminary listening stage at the Muzak meetings, but The Ark captured sophomore art major Heather Henry's attention.
Henry, who has attended the Muzak meetings for two years said that she's been listening to lots of dance music lately, which is why she liked The Ark. “If the Scissor Sisters and Polyphonic Spree had a child, The Ark would be that child,” she said.
The Ark has an older sound that has been modernized, Henry said, referring to their glam rock style combined with synthesizers. State of the Ark, although it is a new album, often evokes the feeling of familiarity with the songs. There may be some familiar riffs and melodies, but The Ark twists each track to put their distinct signature on the album.
In “This Piece of Poetry is Meant to Do Harm,” the falsetto voice of singer Ola Salo placed over synthesizers gives a modern sound to a song that sounds like it came from the '70s. It has a slow build up but turns into a fun, pop rock song. The playful tone continued through most of the album.
“Clamour for Glamour,” one of Henry's favorite songs on State of the Ark, is a fun dance song with underlying rock tones. It mixes the angrier style of The Vines with the flamboyant style of The Darkness. The Ark's lavish music gives the impression of Salo strutting around stage in a glittering, skin-tight cat suit.
Another one of Henry's favorites is “Rock City Wankers,” with continuous dropping of f-bombs, which ruins its radio chances. Punk angst is spliced with Nintendo-style synths and sewn together with a dance rhythm. The lyrics, “spare me your sunglass-protected analysis/ elegant vices, midlife crisis” and “hope they're staring at me while the vicodin is kicking in,” chide the obsessive, publicity-seeking rock star lifestyle.
“We were sick and tired of everything that was supposed to be hip, cool and ironic. It just felt like a big mask people were hiding behind,” Salo said in the band's Web site biography. “We built The Ark as this big un-cool, un-hip thing because for us it was always about expressing something bigger -- we were looking for something larger than life.”
While distaste for the mask of hip music was expounded in “Rock City Wankers,” the rest of the album maintains a larger than life impression that Salo wanted. Floating guitar over a driving drumbeat keeps the momentum of “One of Us is Gonna Die Young.” Catchy melodies grab the listener and invite them to sing along.
Both “Let Me Down Gently” and “Girl You're Gonna Get 'Em” have a certain familiarity about them. Although the beginning of “Let Me Down Gently” sounds like Corey Hart's “I Wear My Sunglasses at Night,” the synthesizers are not nearly as cheesy and the modern spin makes sure this song is not in danger of becoming a novelty. “Girl, You're Gonna Get 'Em” seems to pay homage to “My Sharona” by The Knack, but the falsetto singing with sometimes slurred lyrics makes the song its own.
“The Others” is high-energy dance rock capable of captivating an entire club. It starts slow and builds into a resounding chorus layered with steady bass. Lyrically, it's a simple song, but it manages to weave through various genres and musical influences.
The Ark's clever blend of glam rock and catchy melodies balance against their rock 'n' roll swagger. The members don't take themselves seriously. They claim to be an “un-hip” band, but the modern twist that seamlessly combines classic rock and '80s synth rock makes The Ark a hip band that has the potential to make a mark in the States.
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Visit The Ark's Web site at: http://www.TheArkWorld.com','xhtml','Hype surrounding the return of over-the-top glam rock with The Darkness' debut album may have faded with time, but The Ark's State of the Ark proves that dance rock is not dead.