Review
Genre and Mood
Say Yes Dog’s “Lies” is synth-pop with a dance pulse, and on the trio’s second album it is the groovy, upbeat one: Cool Hunting called it an upbeat and satisfying electro-pop tune with an unwavering groove.
Song Summary
“Lies” was the second single from Voyage, the band’s second album, released with its video in April 2019. The reviews of Voyage agree on its sound: this time the band gave itself over fully to synthesizers and sank deep into the electro-pop of the 1980s. Within that sound, Bedroomdisco heard Lies as the track that relies more on the bass and sounds funkier than the rest. What the lyric says about lies, none of the sources used here discusses, so this review leaves it to the listener.
Musical Breakdown
No source describes this song section by section, so the breakdown follows the parts the reviewers do name.
The Bass
Paul Rundel’s bass is what sets the song apart. On an album Bedroomdisco described as clear synth-pop with funky bass and minimal drums, Lies is where the bass comes furthest forward.
Synths and Drums
soundmag.de named Lies, with Sugar, as an example of the record’s nostalgic aesthetic: 80s-style synthesizers and synthetic-sounding drums. Around them, the same review noted, the band still plays many analogue instruments.
The Video
The video, directed by Stephen Korytko, follows a man in a parachute tracksuit and headphones dancing at the back of a concert crowd.
Concepts in Focus
A synthesizer palette can define a whole album, and on Voyage it does: the reviews describe one consistent sound of 80s synths, which Bedroomdisco found turning monotonous over the full length.
A bassline can give one song its own identity inside a shared sound. With the same synths around it, Lies stands out because the bass carries more of the song and pushes it towards funk. Compare the bass-led groove of Metronomy – Love Letters (Soulwax Remix), by the band reviewers most often place next to Say Yes Dog.
The music video turns the camera away from the band. Its hero is a listener lost in the music at the back of the room, a picture of what the song wants to do to you.
Artistic Context
Say Yes Dog is a German-Luxembourgish electro-pop trio: Aaron Ahrends sings and plays keyboards, Paul Rundel plays bass and Pascal Karier drums. They met studying sound engineering and jazz at the conservatory in The Hague. Voyage followed their 2015 debut Plastic Love four years later and came out on 10 May 2019 on Diskodogs Records; its title, Bedroomdisco wrote, comes from the band’s travels in Japan, Vietnam and South Korea. Hear where they started with Say Yes Dog – A Friend.
Impact and Reception
Voyage drew mixed reviews, three out of five from Bedroomdisco, and soundmag.de heard clever electro-pop with both warmth and coolness, comparing it to Metronomy and Hot Chip. When critics picked out songs, Lies was among the ones they named. It is here for that bass: play it next to Say Yes Dog – Deep Space, the album’s opener, and hear how much one part can change a band’s colour.
