Office for Personal Development - Doing. Is. Thinking

Click the image to buy the album.

The Office for Personal Development, resplendent in their company attire of double-breasted grey suits and green ties, have unleashed their foray into propaganda. Their debut album ‘Doing. Is. Thinking.’ is out now and captures the (mock) government department findings of the past eighteen months from their Bexhill offices.

*image credit John Cheves

During budget week, the treasury and the Chancellor offered little to no hope for public services, the working class, and the standard of life of improvement. Step forward, motivational guru Trevor Deeble. Famed for his time in Indigo Moss and the double act with Hannah-Lou, he created the finest ministerial department since DoSac lost its immigration file USB stick.

‘Born to Be’ takes gentler aspects of Alannah Myles and Pat Benatar's melodic prowess to the fun and quirks of Lemon Jelly, especially Fred Deakin’s recent solo album ‘Fred Deakin Presents The Lasters’. ‘Do It All Over Again’ leans into Deakin’s sonic furthermore, which climaxes in a joyous Kraftwerk ‘Computer Love’ era synth solo from their Head of IT Del Querns. Lyrically, this is where the former single comes alive. The protagonist, a messianic narcissist, details the monstrous thoughts darting around their deluded mind as they carry out the big shop. Both tracks sow the seeds of reintegrating fun back into an electronic scene that has been saturated by Boiler Room posers for far too long.

‘You Are In Control’ and ‘Take Me Back’ continue on this path, with Director Deeble leaning into his Neil Tennant-esque vocal. The former allowed him to glide from angelic to wry, accentuating his auteur overlord presence in the office. The sci-fi sonic is fraught with anxiety via the poptastic keys, the spirit of Hot Chip, and early 90s rave breakdowns but is never without a sense of hope. ‘Take Me Back’, Originally recorded ten years ago when Moss was a fine art student at Goldsmiths University, has a protracted landing to earth but unfurls a pop masterpiece. The heart of ‘A Bath Full of Ecstasy’ infiltrates the melodic magnificence of Wilson Phillips with the elegance of Goldfrapp strutting to the dancefloor.

A day of motivational speaking and team bonding is as promising as having a rusty spoon fish out your kidney stones. Until now! The OPD have business cliché into credible electronic hooks and substantive pop music. Late-night Magic FM has collided with 6Music to produce an underdog record-of-the-year contender.

Office for Personal Development – Invisible me

The best government department since DOSAC have returned with their new single ‘Invisible Me’. The 7-inch will be released via Austerity Records and is backed by b-side ‘Love Me Again’.

Image and artwork courtesy of the band.

Last time out on ‘You Are In Control’, they spoke of setting yourself free from life’s shackles and becoming all you can be. Three Prime Ministers later, the Hot Chip via 90s rave sonic has descended towards synths so icy they could reignite the cold war.

Their creative plummet to emotionless pastures has allowed them to pose the finest couplet of the year:

“Are happy people winning or / Have they already been defeated?”

Who among us can honestly say they didn’t consider walking out to see to find Reggie Perrin when Mrs Pork Markets the economy into a red park bin full of dog shit.

Just when all feels lost comes the defiant Aragon charging alone into the Battle of the Morannon moment arises in the final verse. All the bitterness and resentment at this country’s downturn into a Thatcherite tribute act (“I'm truly glad you found a way / To look after number one”) oozes from company director Trevor Deeble. Deeble’s introduction of the spoken word brings Fred Deakin’s sci-fi Armageddon album ‘The Lasters’ and John Hurt’s slow-burning performance in ‘1984’ to the fore.

On the surface, the lyrics still feel defeated (“I know now what I want / I want to be just like you”), but the spoken word gives it the feel of a quitting speech. One doesn’t quit this spitefully without the hope and rebellion flames flickering.

Despite the gloomy conclusion to 2022, their debut album is still poised to be one of 2023’s finest.