DAT POLITICS - Wow Twist

Dat Politics are on their sixth album, the third released on Chiks On Speed Records. It may be a coincidence, but what was already germinating in the two previous records comes fully to fruition on "Wow Twist": the French trio serves up a round, sugary pop, evidently attempting an arty take on party music.

The result? A near-disaster — actually, scratch "near", because rarely have I heard a sound so sloppy and so utterly lacking in respect for the listener.

Fine, embrace slackness, play it flippant and half-arsed, but there's a limit beyond which it tips into bad taste, into a parody of yourself and others, and Dat Politics, with "Wow Twist", have well and truly crossed it. But what's so irritating about it? Picture an assorted arsenal of cheap keyboards that induce instant hives, videogame beep-beeps, tight rhythms, sci-fi digressions, moronic vocals, and you'll get a rough idea of what this record sounds like. Roughly, because the attitude itself can't really be described; it seeps out of the grooves, you can only sense it. And we can't shake the feeling that these guys made a record just to get by.

Nothing wrong with that, to be clear, but then you can't expect critics and audiences to play along. Try listening to "Fake Friend", which incidentally is one of the less awful tracks, with that little first-communion choir, and you'll probably get the feeling that someone (them, Dat Politics, who else) is taking the piss out of you. And taking the piss can be an art form, but only if your name is Ween or They Might Be Giants.

Shall we talk about the merry-go-round of "Flea Wheel Fest", with beeps, fuzz and booms that make you want to dig out the legendary Commodore 64 (speaking of which, anyone got a tape recorder they can send me?)... actually no, I can already picture them cracking up with laughter thinking about whoever spent twenty quid buying this useless piece of plastic.

Compared to their previous work, Dat Politics have taken a thousand steps backwards — good for them.

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30/04/2026