Miike Snow - Miike Snow

Rating

: * * *

Verdict

:

Thoughtful electropop with a Scandinavian edge.

Some things you need to know about Miike Snow. One: he is not a person, rather it is a band, comprised of three Swedes - singer/songwriter Andrew Wyatt, and producers Christian Karlsson and Pontus Winnberg. Two: Karlsson and Winnberg are better known as Bloodshy & Avant - the brains behind Britney Spears' hits Toxic and Piece of Me. Three: if you combined the pop sensibilities of Spears with the wandering, celestial dream pop of Sigur Ros, you might just get this record. Sound curious?

Well, it is. Curious and ambitious. The result is something that's too restrained for most nightclubs yet too energetic for a Sunday morning chillout. Warbling electronica battles with more traditional sounds throughout, often overpowering the gentle melodies and acoustic rhythms. But when they find the balance, Miike Snow turn out some charming numbers - including the playful Song For No One and bouncing jump of Animal. The soft piano chords and chanting chorus of Burial have a distinct Scandi flavour - reminiscent of Sigur Ros and El Perro del Mar - and prove the band is at its best when toning down the fuzzy reverb and synthesised squelching.

At times, their clubland roots get the better of them - as heard on the pulsing, beeping In Search Of.

For the most part though, this is a cool, cohesive, cross-genre project that only a Scandinavian - or three - could pull off.

Joanna Hunkin