Album Details

• Artist: Datarock
• Album: Datarock Datarock
• Label: Yap
• Year of Release: 2005
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: mschmitt on 2008-06-14

Throughout watching the video for "Computer Camp Love" I was convinced I need a red tracksuit if I ever wanted to be accepted into society. Moments after it ended however, I couldn't believe I was thinking such thoughts. But such is the confusing power of Datarock. Their killer hooks and electronic grooves of their debut Datarock Datarock draw you in to the incredible prowess that is Fredrik Saroea and Ketil Maeland. But their super-serious delivery hints that this may all be a joke and me, the sorry sap wishing he were falling in love at computer camp, is the punch line. In any case, the 2005 record from the Norwegian duo is a goldmine of disco-era electro melodies and irresistibly catchy hooks. But there are two sides to the album. On one hand there is the serious delivery of tracks like "Fa-Fa-Fa" and "Gaburo Girl," songs that combine rock elements with dance-floor aspects in a manner similar to !!! or Ghostland Observatory. The latter track especially, along with "Princess" and "Laurie," are almost sweet-efforts that show that if Datarock played it straight they'd still be able to make a name for themselves. But then there is the odd-ball humor of "Computer Camp Love" and "I Used to Dance with my Daddy." Here is the odd wit of Datarock: stumbling electro-rhythms, goofy and borderline unsettling subject matter, and a wholly serious delivery. Its this deep-voiced, straight faced vocal style that makes lines like "She's not that kind of a girl, booger" so humorous. This sort of silly content may cause you to write-off Datarock as a pair of jokesters in red tracksuits, but the infectious and expertly crafted dance beats force you to take a second look. In the end, its hard to discern the real attitude of Datarock-are they serious odd-balls or sarcastic goof-offs. Perhaps the better question is: does it really matter?

User Reviews and Comments

on 2009-03-19 Meisho_san Said:

I found this album to be a lot of fun. One of its strengths is in how the pace and feel varies widely enough from song to song to keep the listener interested, but not so much as to be jarring.
Rating: 8/10