Return to Central

RELEASE
September 18, 2001
LABEL
SpinART Records
GENRES
Pop/Rock, Alternative Dance, Indie Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Indie Pop

Album Review

Glasgow's Bis tweak their indie pop quirkiness on their fourth album, Return to Central, and it's a desirable and funkadelic feel-good mix of Bis' signature disco hooks and thick pop beats. Surely their most ambitious release, Bis shrug off their post-pubescent punk-pop snarlings and kiddie chants found on The New Transistor Heroes and Intendo and make Return to Central a vibrant twist in their Teen-C Revolution. Manda Rin tames her little girl rants for something sassy, tossing all criticism aside to transcend into electronic bliss. She and Bis cohorts John Disco and Sci-Fi Steve frolic with new wave synth breaks, and let their fondness for Talk Talk, New Order, and Can be known. "What Are You Afraid Of" and "Silver Spoon" splice heavy techno-pop with Rin's vocalic glossy flare; however, Sci-Fi Steven's and Disco's riveting guitars on "Chicago" shimmy into Bis' finest moment on "A Portrait From Space," a loopy celestial soundscape of floating orchestration kicked off with old-school Nintendo samples, yet it's the dream pop guitar work that sets up Bis' new rock cleverness. Bis isn't consumed with angst for the music follower, for they'd rather spiral into club land in their own musical mystery. Return to Central allows Bis to relish in their fun and self-indulgence without them being regarded as snotty indie punks. A sophistication is cast, spawning Bis' bold move from "Kandy Pop."
MacKenzie Wilson, Rovi

Track Listing

  1. What You're Afraid Of
  2. Silver Spoon
  3. Black Pepper
  4. The End Starts Today
  5. Protection
  6. Two Million
  7. Chicago
  8. Metal Box
  9. We're Complicated
  10. Robotic
  11. A Portrait from Space