Metronomy is set to perform on Sept. 14 at the Wexner Center Performance Space.
Credit: Courtesy of Gregoire Alexandre
The advancement of music software has opened doors for composers wishing to explore many different sounds and genres, including Metronomy, an English electropop band set to play at Ohio State Sunday as part of the Wexner Center for the Arts’ Next@Wex series.
Metronomy includes musicians Joseph Mount — whose solo DJ act ultimately launched the band’s career — Oscar Cash, Anna Prior and Olugbenga Adelekan, who has implemented both modern music technology and traditional instruments to create sounds and vocals that nod to both past and future genres.
The Next@Wex series aims to bring “young indie scene music innovators” to OSU from around the world, according to its website, and the rising electronic group fits into the series well with its clever, innovative — and sometimes experimental — style, said Sarah Swinford, performing arts coordinator at the Wexner Center.
“Metronomy’s songs are a combination of new sounds and sounds that refer back to ‘60s pop music,” said Jennifer Wray, marketing and media assistant at the Wexner Center. She said the band’s music offers “Motown-like, stripped-back grooves and rhythms that draw you in.”
The band gained popularity in March when it released its fourth studio album, “Love Letters,” which reached No. 7 on the United Kingdom Albums Chart.
The album’s debut single, also called “Love Letters,” released a music video directed by Michel Gondry, an Academy Award-winning French filmmaker whose works include “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “Dave Chappelle’s Block Party.” Metronomy has recorded in a London studio using all analog equipment that The White Stripes have used, Morgan said.
Wray said the group is known worldwide.
“They’ve made an international splash and a national impression,” Wray said. “When you think of groups like The Kinks or The Zombies, you can see some of the influences to what they’re doing.”
Metronomy’s 2011 album “The English Riviera” was nominated for the UK’s Mercury Prize, a prestigious award for UK albums that has been given to artists such as Franz Ferdinand, the Arctic Monkeys and The xx, Wray said. Along with producing original content, the band has remixed songs from artists like the Gorillaz, Kate Nash and Lady Gaga.
“There’s not many moments where we see touring international bands coming through,” Morgan said. “It’s a great opportunity for Ohio State students to engage in what’s going on in contemporary music culture.”
Metronomy’s performance is set to begin at 8 p.m. Sunday at the Wexner Center’s Performance Space, and features opening act Dawn Golden, a project of Los Angeles producer Dexter Tortoriello.
Tortoriello’s project is signed with Mad Decent, a record label managed by Diplo, an American DJ and producer. Having Tortoriello open for Metronomy adds a modern, electronic element to the show and will be great for anyone interested in electronic music, Swinford said.
“It’s going to be a night of great pop music — music that you’re not going to hear anywhere else,” Wray said.
Tickets are $17 and can be purchased online and from the Wexner Center ticket desk, either in person or by calling (614) 292-3535.
