Action Biker - Hesperian Puisto

All Music Guide

Having done a variety of projects with others as well as various selfreleases under her chosen artistic name, Sarah Pergament aka Action Biker takes a sweetly stripped down approach to her formal solo debut, with fourteen songs clocking in at under twentyeight minutes. Minimal is the watchword, but not skeletal, with her breezy way around sixties pop filtered through eighties indie culture and 21st century computerbased recording actually sounding sweet and rich. Songs like "Love for Sure," the first number with vocals after the appropriately titled "Intro," and "Frosty Snow Winter" have depth to them, even if it's as simple as knowing how to use the echo. The blends help Pergament stand out more from her influences as a result; while you can break down the elements from "Refridgerator" easily enough, from Pulp's surging keyboards to early synthpop melodies to nagging posttechno chime rhythms and more besides, it all comes together in a way that's not worldshattering but still means so...mething that's not simply redoing the past. Similarly the bubbling pulses on "I Look Out for You" sound simultaneously futuristic and Raymond Scott's idea of futuristic, forward and past. Hesperian Puisto is a lowkey delight but a delight nonetheless, something that stands out from the realm of 'indie pop' as a construction. - Ned Raggett, All Music Guide Read more Less