Pow Pow - Last Days On Earth

We fade from black into a vast, futuristic cityscape at night. Behind a ravaged and war torn suburbia sit rows of skyscrapers, lit with mysterious blue neons. Suddenly a helicopter swoops into shot, the music rises as it reveals our protagonist sat staring out of the window, loading his gun and preparing for battle…

Initially, ‘Last Days On Earth’ is like a musical score to a 1980s action sci-fi flick, perhaps with Kurt Russell in the lead. It feels distinctly familiar and brings back memories of watching VHS tapes of dodgy movies and the wobbly synth laden soundtracks that accompany them.

Unfortunately, this heady nostalgia trip is shattered by a large peppering of slightly uncomfortable Euro Synth Pop. ‘The Beach’ is more science class than science fiction, offering cheesy surf guitars and swirly keyboard stabs, and it’s a steady decline from here on in.

‘Solar Eclipse’ is the first time we hear vocals, disguised with a vocoder it sounds like a track Daft Punk would be embarrassed to release - lyrically and sonically it’s a burden the album could really do without. Next up, ‘Apollo’ has potential and is a good listen until that surf guitar returns with its accomplice, the clichéd sci-fi “whooshing noise”.

When Pow! Pow! get it right it’s like listening to a score by Vangelis and Kraftwerk, but the enjoyment is marred by the sudden realisation that the majority sounds like a rearrangement of music you would find on an Open University science video.