One True Pairing
One True Pairing
Release Date: Sep 20, 2019
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Indie Rock, New Wave/Post-Punk Revival, Alternative Singer/Songwriter
Record label: Domino
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Album Review: One True Pairing by One True Pairing
Excellent, Based on 3 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
Tom Fleming, formerly of Wild Beasts, has re-emerged following that group's dissolution as One True Pairing. His debut album is rooted in tales of desperation and shaped by his upbringing in northwest England, exploring notions of masculinity and survival within the current neoliberal era. Drawing from influences that range from Depeche Mode to Bruce Springsteen, he worked with producer Ben Hillier to create a record that focuses his songwriting and the raw nature of his unmistakable voice. One True Pairing mixes bombast and intimate ….
Based on rating 8/10
More than many artists, One True Pairing's Tom Fleming is well prepared to explore the complexities of the late 2010s. After all, he already tackled many of these subjects with Wild Beasts, a band who, over the course of five albums, eloquently explored the intersection of the personal and the political. Fleming continues to examine that fraught, inescapable relationship as One True Pairing, and though the name of his solo project comes from Internet fan fiction, his self-titled debut album couldn't be more genuine.
Based on rating 7.5/10
Tom Fleming is no stranger to melancholy. Serving as one half of the vocal power of beloved, and now defunct, Wild Beasts alongside Hayden Thorpe, Fleming often bore the weight of despair for the project. While Thorpe's voice floated with a certain lightness, Fleming's vocals could often feel more akin to a moan. His performance over the eerie, gently tragic 'New Life', among others, could be shattering without him ever stepping beyond a soft misery.
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