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Myths of the Near Future

by Klaxons

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Flagbearers for the "nu rave" movement they helped found, London's Klaxons make their full-length debut with Myths of the Near Future. Fans of the old rave, initially, will be forgiven for not knowing what all the fuss is about--beyond a dramatically punked-up cover of "Not Over Yet" by '90s chart star Grace, the Klaxons owe precious little to the synthetic rush of UK clubland past or present. Persist, though, because once beyond this realisation, it's possible to appreciate this band on their own merits. "Isle of Her" and "From Atlantis to Interzone" come on like brooding US punks Liars, all thrumming, distorted bassline and a vocal delivery that veers between desolate and manic (although the latter's whirling air-raid siren is very much the Klaxons' own addition), while on the other side of the coin, "Golden Skans" betrays an impressive ability for anthemic, harmony-laden pop. Lyrically, too, it's a confusing and fascinating document, fragments of "peacock's tails" and "madcap Medusa" emerging from the maelstrom. What at first sounds unfocused gradually makes a weird kind of sense; indeed, you suspect the Klaxons planned it that way from the beginning. --Louis Pattison