Gravity The Seducer

It's been over a decade since Ladytron released their first album, so I was bracing myself for the possibility that by now they would be losing their originality. But I am pleased to say that I have been pleasantly surprised by "Gravity the Seducer". Even after all these years, Ladytron can still deliver the goods.

I regard this album as a step up from "Velocifero", their previous one. "Gravity the Seducer" is one of those remarkably catchy albums that I just find myself playing over and over. I would even go so far as to say that it is Ladytron's second best album after "Witching Hour". They remain consistent with their tried-and-tested formula of mesmerising electronics and seductive female vocals, but also manage to keep it sounding fresh.

If you like Ladytron at all, you will definitely like this album. And I would recommend Ladytron to anyone who appreciates intelligent, avant garde pop. As this album proves yet again, they are brilliant.

Ladytron release album number 5 "Gravity The Seducer" which is the follow up to 2008's excellent "Velocifero" and comes after a spell of hanging out with legendary producer Brian Eno(who thinks they are brilliant!), who was once a member of Roxy Music who are the band that Ladytron got their name from as they have a song called "Ladytron". His influence can be heard on the album that sees them add new scope to their sound. It's an album that sees them experiment with different styles than ever before.

This is evident on the smooth opener "White Elephant" the song features a haunting sounding keyboard sound in the background. Ladytron listeners will already be familiar with "Ace Of Hz" as it was already included on carear retrospective "Best of 00-10". The Brian Eno influence is really heard on the 3 instrumental tracks on the album the pick of which is "Transparent Days", "Ritual" would probably have worked better with vocals from either Helen Marnie or Mira Aroyo. the third instrumental track is album closer "Aces High".

If any movie director is looking for a good horror style track then they should take a listen to the chilling and haunting "Moon Palace" which really is helped by Mira Aroyo's cold style of vocal. The song "White Gold" is also haunting sounding in a weird eighties sounding way. "Ninety Degrees" is a track that well get repeated listens with both vocalists on fine form. The album recalls elements and influence from Kraftwrek, Gary Numan, Curve, Brian Eno and The Human League but still having an original feel.

With "Gravity The Seducer" Ladytron may have released their most experimental album to date and longtime fans might be disappointed that the big beats have been replaced by a more mellower sound but it's an album that on repeated listens will show that Ladytron have plenty left to offer and will continue to evolve.

This is a strange, almost ambient, transitional sounding album. They are fully capable of proper distinctive pop music, but they didn't seem inclined to give us any this time.

1 of 12 White Elephant 4:16 (6 out of 10 stars)
It's mildly melodic and up-tempo, but it feels rather flat and undynamic. Maybe a little stiff. The lyrics are so-so.

2 of 12 Mirage 4:22 (6 out of 10 stars)
More melodic than the previous song with a few nice musical touches here and there. The lyrics are also slightly better. Still only a 6 out of 10 song though.

3 of 12 White Gold 5:01 (6 out of 10 stars)
Slightly slower and more stripped down. The lyrics are okay but not good enough to make the song really come alive. They favour simple lyrics, but this song could have done with a bit more than variations on the same line about deception.

4 of 12 Ace Of Hz 3:36 (7 out of 10 stars)
There's nothing obviously better about this song, but it just has some extra X factor to it which makes it better and standout from the other tracks. The drums are nice and forceful.

5 of 12 Ritual 4:18 (8 out of 10 stars)
Great up-tempo instrumental. My personal favourite track on the album. It has a lovely shifting textural quality to it. I wouldn't describe it as ambient music as it rocks and easily holds your full attention.

6 of 12 Moon Palace 3:26 (7 out of 10 stars)
Good lyrics which for the first time on the album has stirred my imagination and created mental pictures to go along with the words. It's very atmospheric. The lyrics are still repetitive, but at least they're repeating three or four different lines this time.

7 of 12 Altitude Blues 3:20 (3 out of 10 stars)
Musically and lyrically uninteresting. Pretty much filler. The vocals are lower than usual in the mix.

8 of 12 Ambulances 3:17 (6 out of 10 stars)
Some of the lyrics seem to be quoting a previous song called Seventeen from the Light & Magic album. Musically I also hear a strong echo of that song. Maybe it's an accident that they sound so similar? I doubt it's a sequel or a continuation.

9 of 12 Melting Ice 4:49 (3 out of 10 stars)
Like the opening track, it feels rather flat and undynamic. An uninteresting song. The vocals are also quite low in the mix.

10 of 12 Transparent Days 4:02 (6 out of 10 stars)
Pretty up-tempo instrumental with nice drum rolls throughout. Otherwise it's indistinctive. It feels like filler. I'm not sure what it really adds to the album?

11 of 12 90 Degrees 4:34 (6 out of 10 stars)
More of the same, although this track might have a bit more of an epic grandeur to it than the others (with the possible exception of Moon Palace).

12 of 12 Aces High 2:55 (5 out of 10 stars)
An anonymous instrumental. Sounds just like the basic sound of everything else on the album. Pointless, though harmless.

I like to make EP playlists out of some albums on my iPod. Tracks 2, 4, 5 and 6 made the cut.

Overall 4 out of 10 stars.