Album Review: BREAD by Sofi Tukker
While the summer club anthems are starting to wind down, people are looking for one last boost of energy before the slower ballads and gentler tunes of fall start to invade the radio. Dance duo Sofi Tukker, who released their third studio album “BREAD” on Aug. 23, is showing just how that transition can be achieved.
Sofi Tukker (whose name is a combination of Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern) is known for their ability to cross musical genres and cultures. From Portuguese vocals to tropical house music to Bolivian folk, the duo finds ways to get people moving. The album, which the band said is an acronym for Be Really Energetic And Dance, focuses more on beats from Brazil while tying in Miami club elements. Additionally, there’s a hint of VIP elegance, not just woven throughout the rhythms, but from the cover with Sofi’s long dress train of various types of bread surrounded by dancers on the steps of a mansion.
The self-titled track kicks off the album with enough energy to promise what’s coming later on in the album before the following track “Throw Some Ass” encourages people to “throw it down and hit the ground.” However, the Brazilian-like beat doesn’t have as big a beat drop as a listener would expect to shake their hips to. The fun lyrics make up for it as Sofi lists off all the remedies she’s tried but finds the only cure is to “free her mind and throw it back.”
“BREAD” takes a softer turn instead of amplifying the tunes to keep people on the floor. “Guardian Angel (Stand by You)” and “Hey Homie” focus on soft-pop with encouraging lyrics of supportive friendship. The former addresses how the listener “needn’t cry/needn’t even hide” as someone is there to stand by them and protect them. The latter combines piano and drums as the lyrics talk about “somebody getting hurt if we took it further” and just having a “lowkey” love for their friends.
From there, the party takes off with “Woof,” a bass and synth-heavy song about heading out to a party and feeling one’s self. Nigerian singer-songwriter Kah-Lo even mentions how she “spent the summer locked down” and how she’s “glowing head to toe,” making the song the perfect getting-ready jam. “Spiral” sounds reminiscent of early 2000s instrumental synth beats as Sofi Tukker puts lyrics about how everything is going down in a spiral before a bossa-nova-style beat drop takes over.
“Cafuné” keeps the party going with its Samba-inspired rhythm as horns blare in the background. The title refers to the Portuguese word for running one’s hand gently through someone else’s hair. The intimate lyrics perfectly contrast the dance house music, even as American Rapper Channel Tres takes a verse to spit bars. However, the party must come to an end as “Perfect Someone” closes the album out with its snappy two-step rhythm about finding the right person for someone.
As musicians, Sofi Tukker knows what will bring people to their feet, but as artists, they know how to effortlessly blend exotic clubs and fun lyrics to bring people together. “BREAD” is much like the carbohydrate it’s named after; the album has a slow start but eventually releases the infectious energy needed to spend the night on the dancefloor.
Write to emma.johnson.5@mnsu.edu