Goldfrapp fans are in for a noticeably different sound from the British duo on the Flood-co-produced “Seventh Tree,” due this week via Mute. Although it doesn’t completely eschew the synth-fueled dance grooves of prior efforts, there’s a greater emphasis on ethereal, psychedelic pop in the vein or early Air.
“We did talk quite a lot about what kind of instruments would get that kind of warmth and that kind of sound we wanted,” Alison Goldfrapp says. “We’d never used acoustic guitars before. We wanted the sound to be delicate, but not weak.”
The group’s new knack for experimenting with its sound led to some songs being recorded in an afternoon, and others taking ages to finish. Indeed, opener “Clowns” was penned in a day but not completed for another six months, according to multi-instrumentalist Will Gregory.
Initially, the plan was to explore a more psychedelic sound, according to Goldfrapp. “We went out and bought some music labeled ‘psychedelia,’ ” she says. “We took it back to the studio [but when] we listened to it, we thought, ‘That’s not what we mean at all.’ I think we invented our own meaning for [“psychedelic”]: We wanted it to be joyous and positive.”
