Office Culture have been writing and performing songs since 2015. A Life Of Crime is their second album, and it promises to offer up more of the same sound.
Wistful may not be the first word that springs to mind when it comes to songs about office culture, but this band manages to pull it off, producing their trademark sound while also conjuring up feelings of nostalgia for the past, and almost sadness that it has gone.
The band is said to have Joni Mitchell as one of their influences, and this is most apparent in the song I Move in Shadows, with its breathiness adding to the wistfulness. The repetition of the line ‘in the pale moonlight’ in the final track Monkey Bone gives it an almost misty quality, as if it is being seen through the veils of memory.
Sophisti-pop is the term usually used for this subgenre, which combines elements of jazz, soul and pop. All of these are on full display here, from the jazzy sound of Too Many and Parade, to the more soulful I Move in Shadows and Monkey Bone. The band have a very complete sound, with every member working to create a seamless effect.
If the album has a flaw, it’s that it all sounds very similar. While the band clearly knows their niche, they are too content to stay there. There is one notable exception – Parade, one of the jazzier tracks on the album, where Office Culture try to stand out with something new.