REVIEW: Blondie 'Pollinator'.

Rhiannon-Skye Boden
May 28, 2017
2 min read

Blondie are a household name, and when you’re a household name releasing new music can be dizzyingly high-stakes. Accusations of selling out are inevitable, the comparisons to older work are endless, and people are unhappy whether you reinvent too drastically or stick too closely to what you’ve done before. In such a pressure cooker of an industry, it would be easier by far just to phone it in and coast, but Blondie have never been that kind of band.

Pollinator proves that even after 40 years in the business, they still have stories to tell. Stories of sex, love and regret in New York City twist through the record, varying from dreamy and romantic to almost bittersweet, but the New Wave sensibility that has made them so irresistible is present on every single track. Collaborations with Sia and Charlie XCX introduce the trio to a whole new generation, but their contributions never feel token, instead sitting perfectly next to Joan Jett’s grit-and-glamour vocals on Doom Or Destiny.

Of course, not every track is gold, but even filler by Blondie’s standards is still pretty damn good. While ‘Already Naked’ and ‘Best Day Ever’ are the least consequential, they make the perfect pause for breath, and give the heaviest hitters on the album room to breathe. Marr’s presence is all over ‘My Monster’, from the jangly guitars to the deliciously melancholy lyrics, but the decidedly British touch proves the perfect counterpoint to Debbie’s decidedly All-American style.

By contrast, ‘Gravity’ is a sparkling explosion of bubblegum pop, perfectly walking the line between sweet and sultry. ‘Fragments’ is a sweeping epic that cycles through emotions like seasons, while ‘Fun’ is just pure 80’s power-punk boasting one of the grooviest basslines of the year. Even when Debbie’s vocals are heavily treated, and they quite often are, she remains as charismatic as ever, and that strength carries the album through some of its more mediocre moments.

In short, Pollinator is as varied and chic as the New York skyline, and a worthy tribute to the legendary Magic Shop studio where it was recorded. The whole album is steeped in the city of its origin, and has proved that even over four decades later, New York is still the place to be.