Perfect Symmetry
October 18, 2008
KEANE
Ever the piano-rock bridesmaid to Coldplay, Keane opened its last album, "Under the Iron Sea" (2006), with dour strings, military funeral snare hits and weepy arpeggios. But "Perfect Symmetry" bursts out of the gate with a suite of giddy, '80s-inflected Brit pop songs that, surprisingly, suit the band well. "Spiralling" recalls Keane's radio hit "Is It Any Wonder?" with a healthy injection of synth; "Better Than This" is a dead ringer for a Smiths song, liberally using hand claps, singer Tom Chaplin's falsetto and a singing saw, of all things. When the band finally does return to familiar territory (soaring, ebony-and-ivory drama), it spares nothing. "I dream in e-mails/Worn-out phrases," Chaplin broods on the title track, first a cappella, and then over the rolling thunder of the keys. —Kerri Mason
|
Share on LinkedIn
