Culture

Cooking Vinyl

(3/5)


As impeccably-timed as much of their back catalogue, Groove Armada’s sixth full length, Black Light, sees the duo channeling mid-‘80s synth-pop reference points to make the inevitable ‘dark’ album. Currently operating sans-frontman, the album calls on singers as renowned as Bryan Ferry and desperate as Will Young to focus their key songs around. However, relatively unknown chanteuses SaintSaviour and Jessica Larrabee hold much of the album together, granting a cohesion that might have otherwise not existed.
Opening with the biggest filler track on the album, ‘Look Me In The Eye Sister’, Groove Armada’s first foray away from the coffee table seems destined for the bargain bin. However, Andy Cato and Tom Findlay soon pull through, with a collection of songs that, while not altogether cohesive, definitely showcase their production pedigree.
The second half of the album holds more rewards. ‘Paper Romance’ is a treat for those disappointed by MGMT’s latest opus. ‘Warsaw’ follows through on the darkness threatened throughout the rest of Black Light, with Empire of the Sun’s Nick Littlemore screaming out against love lost. Bryan Ferry’s talents are saved for the suitably mature ‘Shameless’, a pulsating proto-pop excursion haunted by detached backing vocals and Ferry’s own distinct register. ‘Time and Space’ helps to close the album, as the vocal interplay of Jessica Larrabee and SaintSaviour is supported by the most sonically accomplished middle-ground between Groove Armada’s MOR pop history and their industrial inspiration. Pity it took an entire album to get there.