The Rapture: Echoes

I know I’m supposed to love this album. And to some extent I really do like its weird Cure aesthetic, but too much dance shit almost ruins it for me. I honestly can’t tell if they’re being serious or ironic with some of this stuff. Considering their hipster pedigree, it may be the latter, but my heart is telling me otherwise. The lead singer has a voice that might cause dogs to howl and the squeamish to go running for cover, but it’s affective for the somewhat jarring genre of “dance punk.” The music, with its bass kick, rapid beats, and cowbell just kind of grabs you and shakes you and screams at you to pay attention. Unfortunately, it also tells me at points to look away from the horror with my headache in full bloom. The music in and of itself is fun and energetic, but the lyrics are as insipid as most funk and dance music. Overall I like it, but really only in very small doses.