Review: Metropolis - Cut Capers

Cut Capers are an act I’ve been interested in for a while now. I mentioned in my previous article that they were one of the highlights of Swingamajig – certainly the highlight of the day festival – and the few other times I’ve seen them, they’ve consistently been incredibly entertaining. Their flawless blend of swing, ska, and hip hop makes them the perfect summer band to dance around to in the sunshine, and the release of Metropolis couldn’t have been timed better; with summer approaching I suspect I’ll be listening to this album on many hot days over the coming months.

This is the band’s second album, but their first on Freshly Squeezed, in which they seem an ideal fit alongside other acts such as SwinGrowers and the Sweet Life Society. Cut Capers have been establishing themselves within the scene for a while now, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this album firmly puts them on the vintage remix map alongside their contemporaries. I’m always reminded of Deluxe when listening to Cut Capers, and I see no reason as to why they might not one day be just as successful as their French peers.

The album opens with ‘Get Movin’’, which with its lyrical allusions to Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman signals that the band knows exactly where their music stands in relation to their influences. There’s a few moments like this throughout Metropolis, such as the Reinhardt-esque gypsy jazz on ‘Let’s Start Again’, or the New Orleans style brass band sound on ‘One More Drink’; you really get the sense that the band are very aware of their place in history, and what’s come before them.

Moving on, ‘Wait Just a Minute’ is an early standout track, with a strong hook that’s impossible not to dance to; and the catchiness of ‘I Know’ demonstrates clearly why it was chosen as the lead single. In the very middle of the album, ‘El Viaje’ provides an interesting contrast to the rest of the release, both linguistically as well as tonally, through its use of particularly minor harmonies.

The harsh brass tones found in ‘Wait Just a Minute’ return even stronger in ‘Elephant’, which at 2.59 is the shortest track on the album and almost has a bit of a punk rock feel to it. And then ‘Feet off the Ground’ is the near opposite of this – without doubt the most musically explorative track of the album, and featuring some beautiful harmonies throughout. In both instances, Cut Capers demonstrate their ability to write and perform in an array of styles, each time to an impressive level.

Cut Capers’ music is fun, enjoyable, danceable, and what I love most is that there’s no element of pretentiousness to them whatsoever. It’s simply a group of friends having a great time making some music, and managing to do a fantastic job of it. The production of Metropolis is super sleek, the songwriting is excellent, and the overall feeling one gets when listening is just a huge sense of fun and happiness. I believe that we’re going to be seeing a lot more of Cut Capers.