Spend Summer 2018 shaking it up in La Favière.

Do you like Iversen? I’ve been a big fan ever since the release of their 2017 album, Arcade. It was on Arcade where Josh Iverson’s lyrical presence was clear and apparent. I think Forever Night was the group’s undisputed masterpiece. Until now.

Fresh from their performance at London’s Retro Future Fest, last week saw the release of Josh and Jonny’s new EP La Favière.

An artist’s second release is always going to be a tough one. Especially after the fantastic Arcade. However what’s clear is that not only have Iversen maintained that quality jam, they’ve risen above it.

I won’t cover every track but I want to be clear in staying that the whole EP is great. More than that, it’s stunning.

We start with Chain Smoking which opens with a familiar synthy vibe but very quickly slides into what has become Iversen‘s signature funky tone. The track makes a strong statement. It’s familiar to the style we have come to expect from the duo and has those 80s movie opening credit sequence vibes but it feels so much more elevated than I was expecting. New album. New level.

We very quickly slide into Turn Right which seems to then set the tone for the rest of the album. Soft, lyrical and polished. The lyrics are familiar and you can relate, making it a journey through relationships and love to a soundtrack of smoothness.

Then we have the title track, La Favière. Immediately it kicks in with what I would describe as a Tom Selleck vibe (hell knows what that means!) Images of white walls and hand painted jazz portraits filled my brain. Then quickly it moved to beaches and sunshine as the lyrics take us in that direction. It’s already quite clear from previous blogs that i’m a big sax fan so I was very happy to be enveloped by the use of the sound throughout the track, as well as what I assume are Josh’s masterful guitar skills. The track wouldn’t be out of place at Young Flannigan’s beach bar in Cocktail. It’s a fucking great song and ends quickly with me wanting more. Exactly how you want.

Fast forward a bit and we get to the album’s swan song – This is In Dreams, a great, great song, a personal favorite. As it steadily moves us to the EP’s conclusion it’s far distant from the tone of La Favière. Much like the opening track, it feels like the last 5 minutes of an 80s brat pack movie – The protagonist has learned their life lesson and they are walking off into the sunset. There are hints of sadness to the lyrics but the track builds and builds to a guitar solo that seems to bridge us to the final minute and a half that defines this album. Clean. Polished. Relatable.

La Favière signifies an important step for Iversen. It not only matches the enjoyability of Arcade, it elevates it. The lyrics and writing feels quite personal and throws a lot of emotion out there. And it works. La Favière is clearly a development in their sound to a place that feels so enjoyable and whole.

Buy it on Bandcamp. Stream the shit out of it. Buy the Cassette. Order the vinyl.

Now you’ll have to excuse me. I have to return some videotapes.