Album Review: Goldfrapp - Head First

Published on Sunday 21 March 2010 13:13

RELEASE OF THE WEEK GOLDFRAPP Head First *** Mute CDSTUMM 320 £12.99

I Wanna Life sounds as though Laura Brannigan and Van Halen were trapped in a time-travelling elevator, with the latter leaping out on the top floor, while the single Rocket has more than a hint of Van Halen's Jump about it.

Naturally, it is all done in the best possible taste, never more so than Shiny And Warm, which blends the best club moves of Suicide with a slither of Grace Jones.

Alive is powered by Tubeway Army synthesisers with the glossy sheen of Hollywood rock guitar admiring its reflection in the mix.

That is not as engaging as the Moroder/Eurythmics/Human League mash-up that is Dreaming, with Alison trying very hard not to wish she was Donna Summer.

Her vocals are teased to perfection throughout, and hard to resist when she clicks into that woozy dream mode. But the keyboards sound a little leaden on the title song, and Hunt is anonymous enough to pass virtually unnoticed. The breathy technology of Voicething is more captivating than a Laurie Anderson tribute but something of a musical non-sequitur.

Overall, it's an immaculate assembly of influences, but there's not a truly killer song to be heard.

Download this: Shiny And Warm

This article was first published in Scotland On Sunday on March 21, 2010