I
remember discovering The Wombats. It was the fall of 2007 and I was surfing a British music blog when I came across a funny song title and clicked. Although I'm used to hearing probably 1000 new bands per year and falling in love with only a couple dozen, it took just one chorus for me to be hooked—"Let's dance to Joy Division/And celebrate the irony!" There was a gleeful, cheeky, winking intelligence on top of pure adrenaline that exploded through the speakers. British indie-rockers The Wombats are back with This Modern Glitch, a more danceable, darker output than 2007’sA Guide To Love, Loss & Desperation. The 17 tracks on A Guide, except for the barbershop-quartet-style opener, all fit the energetic British indie-rock vein, similar to The Mystery Jets and The Kooks. It’s full of high tempos, angular guitar riffs, repeated chants and quick-twitching bass lines. Their sophomore LP is every bit the indie dance rock follow-up they could have ever hoped to make. Taking their trademark wit, self-deprecation, teen angst, and pop culture fanboy-ism, This Modern Glitch is heavy on the sweet sounds of synth and a ton of nerdy boyish ache. Don’t, however, let that awkwardness skew the fact they’re mature, dedicated songwriters.
This Modern Glitchremoves A Guide’s excess and shifts the band’s direction; the former album contains just 10 songs, not 17. Its opening track, “Our Perfect Disease,” sets the mood for the rest of the record by inserting rapid electronic bloops before adding ‘80s-style synths and keys. The Wombats’ new course feels like an attempt fit in with modern trends. Music’s equivalent of ‘80s-style sunglasses has returned to pop charts, so The Wombats’ move isn’t surprising. Synths and deep drones, staples of recent dance-rock outfits, appear throughout the majority ofThis Modern Glitch. Such digital traits combined with songs of nostalgia and regret (e.g. “1996”), lend the album a gloomy feel. But thanks to The Wombats’ intensity, it never approaches depressing.
“Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)” focuses heavily on gloomy synths and rhythmic elements, reaffirming the group’s dance-vibe direction. By highlighting a warm bass and adding subtle flourishes, “Tokyo,” along with the more minimal “Jump Into The Fog” and string-heavy ballad “Anti-D,” stand out against the remainder of a rather stale album. Unlike other groups in the modern indie dance-rock category (Cut Copy, Friendly Fires) that create intriguing layers and textures by mixing in disparate, interesting electronic elements, The Wombats stick to a relatively ordinary bag of tricks. DESIGNED BY NICOLE MANZO
The group’s main selling points remain. Every song is designed to get people moving by focusing on danceable rhythms that all build to infectious, energetic choruses. Occasional background vocals add ethereal elements behind lead singer Matthew “Murph” Murphy’s confrontational delivery, and most songs try for at least one noticeable hook.
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NEWSOUNDMAGAZINE.COM