A God-awful Small Affair

Alex Frankel and Nick Millhiser's 2011 self-titled debut - as reviewed here - may have been a little late to the making-EDM-cool party, but of all of that was quite immaterial when presented with anthems as catchy and sublime as Do It Again . The rest of the album may have struggled to resonate in a year when chilling electronica was being put out by stronger artists like Washed Out, Bjork and Katy B (just covering all ends of the spectrum, there), but if anything the indie scene has only grown more accommodating for such acts with the return of Daft Punk and their Moroder-worship, and strong performances from Disclosure, Arcade Fire and Phoenix. The challenge here, really, is to make an album as symbiotic as their first, but keep the interest running past the first three tracks. And going back to an even stronger 80s influence is certainly a step in the right direction when the whole country (us UK patriots, that is) is currently enjoying adverts blasting Nothing's Gonn...

#40 - "Holy Ghost!", Holy Ghost! If you're going to buy just the one synthpop album from 2011 - this is very much one of the frontrunners. Listen to 'Do It Again' now. #39 - "Twist Again", Bodies of Water I still much prefer the band's outings as 'Music Go Music' but if you're a little afraid of ABBA revivalism and fond of folky nostalgia, this won't disappoint. #38 - "House of Balloons", The Weeknd I didn't review this when it came out because it totally escaped me, but having downloaded it a couple of weeks ago I found it surprising, exciting and basically what Bon Iver might have been had they worked more with Kanye West. #37 - "Veliciraptor!", Kasabian It was totally daft but it's nice to see that at least one British mainstay has retained the ability to put out an album of original tunes *glares at Beady Eye* #36 - "Angles", The Strokes I really wanted to place this higher on accounts of its ...

With so many current clichés to boot it's difficult where to start to evaluate Holy Ghost! An electronic (1) male (2) duo (3) from New York City (4) that have built a small name for themselves (5) by remixing (6) for the likes of MGMT (7) and LCD Soundsystem (8), what does stick out is the sheer tenacity with which opener 'Do It Again' asserts itself. Sounding like a Prince collaboration with the Pet Shop Boys, it's a perfect stab at current trends with a slick synth chorus and cool twanging vocals about 'the city' and 'networks'; like Kraftwerk felt like dancing. 'Wait and See' continues with the pop hooks in the same vein that Empire of the Sun managed albeit less consistently (whilst their singles certainly shone better), but 'Hold My Breath' is just a shade too nostalgic and retrospective as to prove anything remotely original or stellar. There's however a disco-funk element to 'Say My Name' that is endlessly catchy; paire...