Ladytron Witching Hour Rykodisc, 2005 amazon

I saw Ladytron at the Paradise in Boston in February 2003, and came away with one image defining my judgement of the show. About a third of the way through their set, the band, consisting of vocalists/keyboardists Helena Marnie and Mira Aroyo and keyboardists Reuben Wu and Daniel Hunt, launched into a song, and Reuben seemed puzzled. He played with the knobs on his Roland synthesizer, but couldn't fix whatever problem he thought he was having. He called over one of the roadies, and as i recall it the roadie picked up Reuben's hand, which was playing the same note over and over again, and moved it a few keys down. Reuben's face immediately lit up, problem solved. This story has probably been embellished in my mind over time, but my perception of Ladytron as a collection of button-pressing automatons persisted. I liked their songs, but i just found the whole endeavor rather sterile and uninspired. Enter their third album, Witching Hour, to be released later this month. Inspiration hits. While continuing with the Kraftwerk-esque soundscape that has served them well in their first two records, the band seems to have expanded its electronic repertoire and found the magic of distortion. Or at least found second gear on their suddenly peppy electronica-mobile. Call me crazy, but i think i hear real drums on the opener "High Rise". While i remember the band closing with a particularly kickass cover of "Oops (Oh My)" in Boston, its energy contrasted starkly with the demure moods of the rest of the set. The band has learned that such tempo changes are gold, and use them to maximum effect on their new album. "Sugar" is a prime example, pushing Ladytron's pace way past that of previous songs like "Seventeen" and "Playgirl". Some Dance Disaster Movement-type disonance can even be found in songs like "Fighting In Built Up Areas". The hypnotic somber electronica is still around, for example in "Beauty". My review may be overly flippant, but i for one find Ladytron's third album to be a step in the right direction.

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