VHS OR BETA : The Melting Moon mp3

Here's a record you can have some fun with. Play this mp3 or the actual record for a fellow music lover, but don't tell him/her who the band is. Then, after a couple minutes, ask "So, how do you like the new Cure record?" They'll bite. I can almost guarantee it.

I don't know much about VHS or BETA (Astralwerks), except that I could never rent Beta videos when I was kid because I had a VCR that only played VHS. Seriously, after hearing this record today I can say that they sound like The Cure. A lot. I'll be more specific and compare VHS or BETA to the early Cure material of the "Boys Don't Cry" era. It doesn't match the pop sensibility or songwriting of The Cure, but comes close in terms of vocals, guitars, synths, and energy. At times, VHS or BETA rocks pretty hard while throwing some new wave at you in the form of synthesizers.

Some pop music purists may revolt on me if I say that VHS or BETA sounds like the Cure or any pop music staple of that calibre. After hearing this band you'll know deep down in your heart that they do. I have no problem when artists pay homage to the bands that have inspired them, and, if as a result they end up emulating their sound, fine. I say, if you're gonna do it - DO IT WELL. Many new indie bands have tried to sound like an 80s band and end up sounding ridiculous or all their songs sounding the same. VHS or BETA does their 1980s thing very well on their new record Night on Fire. It's 1980s post-punk new wave pop that is quite unlike anything I've heard from the indie scene, and better than what the Cure has put out lately.