Synths and electro-pop meet a crisis of faith in Modern Temple’s latest track.
Modern Temple – ‘Radio’
Video killed the radio star, claimed The Buggles, (in one of the best pop songs of all time, I will fight you on this) but radio still hangs on, despite our streaming age. Perhaps it’s become a symbol for something bigger, this technology that’s both archaic and current. It’s precisely this retro-futuristic bent that Modern Temple tap into in their aptly titled song, ‘Radio’.
Modern Temple is the project of husband and wife duo Dustin and Ellie Moreau, who create everything in their home studio in Texas. Faith plays a large part in the couple’s lives, and this drips through into the pleas of ‘Radio’, but remains universal enough for anyone’s spiritual or emotional crisis.
‘Radio’ is a grinding electro-synth track, with a stomping beat to anchor us, but never staying in one place too long.
‘My conscience was sedated’, admits Dustin in vocals on the brink of overdrive, reaching for something between the spiritual and the analogue as he describes ‘floating up into your frequency’. The titular chorus ‘Radio my soul, I can’t do this on my own’ is instantly hooky, and the blend of the duo’s voices is immensely satisfying.
With its sharp, bubbling beats featuring snares and clicks for days, the track owes a lot to 1980s synth-pop such as INXS. However, there’s enough modern flair to keep it from being dated, with echoing vocals reminiscent of bands like the Arctic Monkeys, and funky guitars and electro influences that could fit in with the likes of La Roux or The Weeknd. The occasional wry hints of self-awareness peek through too, as Dustin remarks ‘I better write this down’. It’s a polished single from a self-assured duo who have already racked up thousands of Spotify streams before even releasing an album – which will appear soon.
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Words Eden Tredwell
