Record Review: Cut Copy - In Ghost Colours

Rating: 8.4 / 10.0

It seems like everyone and their mother has put out a dance record. This makes it really hard to find the people that are actually good at it. Dance has become a genre - not unlike folk - that so many people want to get in on that it becomes easy to get lost in the (sizeable) shuffle. It's alarming to hear the amount of hookless crap with uncreative beats and shoddy production floating around out there masquerading as dance music. Just go to the iTunes Music Store and do a genre search for "Dance" to see for yourself; I'll not name names.

In my mind, in a climate such as this, those who do well by the genre should be more richly praised for it. The sophomore album from Melbourne's Cut Copy, In Ghost Colours, is a record that proves the band's dedication to the genre, if not their unparalleled prowess. They are not the best act in dance music today - not even close - but I don't think that anyone could have reasonably hoped for a better record from this crew.

The band carefully infuses their electropop with a rock sensibility - from the "ooh, ooh, ooh"s in the stunning opening track, "Feel the Love". "Lights & Music" incorporates a guitar and vocals breakdown just shy of three minutes that evokes the one between Justin Timberlake's "LoveStoned / I Think She Knows Interlude" from FutureSex / LoveSounds - mind you, that breakdown was one of the better moments on that record. The record even has what I regard to be pure rock songs in "Midnight Runner", which leads seamlessly into the Killers-inspired and insanely catchy "So Haunted".

This album is cohesive on two key levels. First, the songs lead nicely into one another. The album has a definite and sensible arc to it that makes it a much more interesting listen. The songs themselves are also wonderfully organised on a track by track level. The band weds seemingly incompatible elements to create a wonderful atmosphere; this is clearer nowhere than when synthesiser and saxophone blend to beautiful effect on "Hearts on Fire". Generally speaking, In Ghost Colours is never too bare but never too crowded - a balance which is very difficult to achieve. The guitars often take centre stage - they are much more creatively employed than the synthesisers, which is perhaps odd for a dance record, but certainly is refreshing. While LCD Soundsystem's last album payed stronger homage to the electronic side of his sound, Cut Copy has erred on the side of punk, allowing them for a more nuanced record with more varied sound.

Despite the diversity on this record, however, there is still a sameness to it that is curious. It's perhaps due to Whitford's limitations as a vocalist - his range is limited, and he doesn't force the issue or take many risks with it. There are none of the yelps and shouts here that we might find on an LCD Soundsystem record. Whitford is probably a better vocalist than James Murphy, but he is also visibly diffident here, as most of the vocal performances are scripted, diffident, and universally reserved. This impression is all the more strident given the amount of interesting things going on instrumentally. Additionally, while the songwriting is strong, the individual talents of the band members as musicians struggles to keep up, as evidenced by some of the songs that seem to be crying out for a sharper beat, or a lead guitar line. These are ornaments which Cut Copy seem unable to provide, and while their absence doesn't make the record bad, it keeps it from being great. But please, dont' get me wrong. This is a very good, hugely enjoyable record, one that is the result more of dedication to the craft than of pure talent. Take a lesson, children: hard work pays off.

-PTC