From the very first chord, you can tell this is going to be one devastatingly cool album. And The Power Out, the second release from all-girl foursome Electrelane, doesn't disappoint for the most part.
Dripping with a nonchalant confidence that few bands manage to pull off without arrogance, Electrelane's sound has a beautiful atmospheric drive that instantly gets under your skin, enhanced by Verity Susman's instrumental vocals in four languages.
Highlight of the album is The Valleys, a mighty choral arrangement of a Siegfried Sassoon poem which somehow sits alongside the bluesy-rock of Take The Bit Between Your Teeth and the moody strut of On Parade without batting an eyelid.
However, it is the band's overwhelming wealth of ideas that stops The Power Out from being truly great, and their dalliances with electro and sedate piano solos towards the end are unnecessary. Ladies, save them for the next album.
Updated: 08:35 Thursday, February 26, 2004
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