Röyksopp - Senior

Artist: Röyksopp

Album: Senior Living

Rating: 4.5

Record Label: Wall of Sound/ Astralwerks

If 2009’s Junior was optimistic, then Röyksopp’s fourth LP titled Senior is the perfectly aged foil – edgy, moody and brooding. Recorded around the same time, the two very different records are meant to present two different sides of the duo. While Junior was supposed to present a more “danceable” Röyksopp (which is delivered rather efficiently), Senior is about what they call “The darker sibling who lives in the attic”. True to their claims, Senior is a record to get lost in, to kick back to. The duo from Norway has gone entirely instrumental on this effort, quite a departure from their usual vocal-intensive music. Tricky Two, appropriately named for the second track, may create a momentary illusion of a slightly uptempo drift, but listen carefully and you’ll see that’s only part of the story being told through the record. On The Alcoholic, you can almost hear the birds chirping and the rain as if you were on a drunken ride through the countryside. The broody Senior Living is haunting, exotic and delicately layered with an almost angelic choir like feeling in parts. The Drug, on the other hand, effortlessly fuses minimal 90s house synth with a trip-hop beat. Forsaken Cowboy takes us back to the duo’s debut album Melody A.M. with its swinging tempos and restrained moodiness. The soundscape on this record is lush, if at times a bit eerie like on The Fear, and full of 70s synth recalls. Overall, one of the best albums we’ve heard so far this year.

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(Published in today's The Sunday Guardian)