Light at the End of the World
Label: Mute
Length: LP
Media: CD
Format: Album
WorkNameSort: Light at the End of the World
With the chains of love ‘ the very same ones that connected them with mass audiences in their late-’80s alt prime ‘ long since broken (blame the country album â?¦ no, the covers one), Andy Bell and Vince Clarke carry on with periodic brushes with brilliance, typically buoyed by the very same synthetic loony-bounce that earned them little respect in their Erasure heyday. But even the diehards would have to agree that for some time there has been something missing from their well-tested synth/gay formula: namely, substance. Light at the End of the World represents a valiant attempt at pulling Andy Bell’s lyrical head out of its posterior and back onto the dance floor ‘ a feat it occasionally succeeds in (‘Storm in a Teacupâ?� is a masterstroke about his drunk mother, first single ‘I Could Fall in Love With Youâ?� is an Innocents-style stomper of warm abandon). Unfortunately, the edge largely remains dulled, missing the marks nailed by transcendent hits like ‘Drama,â?� ‘Chorusâ?� and ‘Stop!â?� and too often falling into a half-hearted patchwork of unsurprising clichés that suggest duty rather than booty. Still, it kicks the sullied asses of Cowboy and Loveboat easily enough. Deservedly so.
This article appears in May 30 – Jun 5, 2007.