One day last week, I was listening to the debut album from Toronto’s Thunderheist, which struck me as pretty much the soundtrack for a night in a dance club I’d like if I went to dance clubs. The songs had A and B parts more than verses and choruses, so they’re weren’t arresting, but they were pleasant. That thought drifted to the premise that electronic music records are more honest than traditional guitar/bass/drums because they make their artificiality manifest, whereas traditional instrumentation albums involve technology in a host of ways that are missed because of the instrumentation’s normalcy. 

This train of thought continued through the opening of “LBG,” a strobed cascade of notes. Then vocalist Isis comes in coolly, speak/rapping until she gets to the chorus, which is done over the strobed sequence. The words are nothing special – “She’s a little booty girl / If you’re saucy do the twist / if  you’re bossy do like this” – but Isis provides a needed additional rhythm in her performance of the lines, and suddenly the song was more engaging. A personality formed, one that was as familiar with da club as 50 Cent but more worldly. As she moved through the second verse, the rhythmic acuity of her rap stopped all other thoughts and focused me on the song as surely as if it was a pop classic. 

I’ve listened to the song a few more times and I’ve liked it each time, but I’ve never been as caught by it as I was that one time. Still, considering how many CDs I stop listening to because they never engage my attention, I’ll get behind the song and give the whole disc another listen or two.