Product Description

The Science Lab Boy's return to burn with a lighting rod full of Electro Funk. Hello 2013 Back to check your pulse with that System Sound

The pioneering synth duo The System, comprised of lead singer Mic Murphy and keyboardist David Frank, rode the 80s wave of emerging synth/MIDI music technology to help lay the foundation for contemporary electronic popular music with their upfront, unapologetic use of synths and intelligent songwriting. Their revolutionary single You Are in My System helped to usher in a new era of electronically based pop music, leading to the release of their debut record Sweat in 1983. Following the release of X-Periment in 1984 and The Pleasure Seekers in 1985, the title track of their album Don't Disturb This Groove went to number one R&B and number three pop in 1987.

The System's new album System Overload will please their longtime fans and gain new ones. The Dynamic Duo shakes up the clubs with stinging futuristic electri-funk mixed with tough love lyrical perspective and one of a kind soulfulness.

Review

Mic Murphy and David Frank were ahead of their time. Murphy was the vocalist and Frank the keyboardist for the 1980s R&B/dance/techno band The System. The group is best known for their 1984 hit You Are In My System and their 1987 mega smash Don t Disturb This Groove. The band was distinguished by Murphy s smooth vocals as well as lyrics that were a step above what was often heard in dance music. The System s production values were cutting edge for the 1980s. In fact, I went back and listened to the band s two biggest hits on You Tube, and both cuts hold up well today.
Murphy and Frank include updated vocal and instrumental versions of Don t Disturb This Groove, on their new album System Overload. The band doubles down on the technology on the updates. However, Don t Disturb This Groove, version 1.0 hardly sounds like a relic. Those not aware of their history could hear both and conclude that the newer version is a remix. That is a testament to how forward leaning the original Don't Disturb This Groove turned out to be.
Ironically, the biggest factors in The System's comeback are the qualities that predate the digital revolution solid vocals, infectious melodies and good songwriting. All three can be heard throughout The System's latest project, System Overload.
Murphy s voice is a lively and soulful as it was when You Are In My System served as his musical introduction to the masses. Murphy spits his words out rapid fire on the propulsive dance number The Toast (to the Good Life), but his vocals manage to maintain a distinctive soulfulness.
The bouncy, hip-hop influenced Tug O War is crafted to draw dancers to the floor. Still, it s the theme and the lyrics that elevate this post-modern R&B jam. The track employs the schoolyard game as a metaphor for two lovers who are constantly at odds and attempt to impose their will on the other: You go enemy/I take the blows/You hittin way to low/It s hand to hand/It s toe to toe/And we settle up the score/We drawin lines/We never compromise/The innocent caught in the middle/Just have to pick a side. The chorus proves that Murphy and Frank are still the masters of the catchy hook: You say it s day/I say it s night/We just can t agree anymore/You say it s wrong/I say it s right/Keep getting in this tug of war. It kind of seems right that a song about conflict has two choruses with contrasting views. Come on let me in your corner/And take off your body armor/Maybe we should join our forces/Our love is like a tug o war/you know we don t need defense/Making love is our consensus/Maybe we should join our forces/And maybe we could end this tug o war?
Musical tastes change, and there are a couple of ways that veteran artists can respond. They can stay true to the style that brought them fame, or they can seek to adjust to the musical styles and tastes of the day. If an artists elects for the former he risks being labeled as a relic, and the latter creates risks of continually being one or two steps behind the ever changing musical landscape. However, if there is one theme that comes from listening to System Overload, it's that the time might just be now for these two music industry veterans who have been on the grind for 30 plus years. Pull aside the technology and you have what has always been the foundation of the best music: Strong melodies, great vocals and lyrics that say something. And that is timeless. Highly Recommended.
By Howard Dukes-Soultracks --Soultracks