Album Review: Ladytron - Velocifero (3/5)

Velocifero, a term the band says means "bringer of speed," is the fourth album from Ladytron, the British electro-pop group that made waves in 2005 with their last album, Witching Hour. They are vaguely reminiscent of mid to late '80s Depeche Mode or New Order with a stronger dance/new wave sensibility.

"Black Cat," the French-language opening track, has an appealingly dark sound with sharp bass, but really isn't a standout for me. I much prefer the second track and first single, "Ghosts," which is more melodic and upbeat, although no one would mistake them for Alphabeat. "I'm Not Scared" is even more upbeat and still pretty dark.

Then there's "Runaway," my favorite track, which has a sharp beat and sinister synth-based groove that sounds very Depeche Mode (Music for the Masses era). "Season of Illusion" keeps up the dark synths and propelling beat. They keep changing female singers, which is interesting. The "Season of Illusion" singer has a deeper voice than the "Runaway" lead. Sometimes they sing together, which is better yet. "Burning Up" is less insistent than many of the tracks that come before it, but the group punches up the melody nicely on the chorus.

"Kletva" really layers on the synth chords, but unfortunately abandons the melody, but it's thankfully short. "They Gave You a Heart, They Gave You a Name" is better, but not wonderful. "Predict the Day" opens with someone whistling over a heavily distorted bass line, and is generally better, although at this point, I think I'm getting bored with the album.

Sexy "Deep Blue" restores my interest though. It's the album's longest track and the best of the second half, featuring a great strings-based middle section. After sagging in the middle, it's nice that the album picks up at the end. Big-sounding "Tomorrow" exudes a certain amount of warmth. "Versus" features male and female vocals--I think the only track to do so but I could be wrong.

My overall assessment of this album is that it is pretty good, but not wonderful. Some of the early tracks are especially good, but this album seems to lack much range--every track features sinister '80s-style synth grooves with beats that range from slightly above mid-tempo to fairly upbeat (but never harsh). About 2/3 through the album, I felt like I was getting bored with the repetition. While it's interesting that they use old fashioned analog synth instruments, it shows that the newer digital ones probably could provide a lot more variety.

Best: Runaway, Ghosts, Deep Blue, Burning Up, I'm Not Scared