The Horrors - Skying

The Horrors were one of the great surprises of 2009. Their sophomore album Primary Colours was a massive leap forward from their debut. A display of maturity in song writing, and the magic touch of Portishead's Geoff Barrow in the studio. I sang its praises to anyone who would listen, and named it in my top five albums of the year. It's a lot to live up to. and for what it's worth they almost get there. No matter how you slice it though, this album isn't as good as Primary Colours.

The thing is I can't really tell you where it falls down. The music is still a guitar driven heavy pop reminiscent of the English scene of the '80s. The songs are still long (by pop standards) and unafraid to spend a few minutes fully exploring a sonic idea. The production (this time by The Horror's themselves, at Barrow's suggestion) is still thick and textured and deep enough to sink into. Perhaps it's just because I know they can do it now, that lack of surprise keeping them from absolute mastery.

Having said all that the album is definitely growing on me. The more I listen to it, the more I like it. I keep finding little sonic surprises buried in the production (for example the jangling repetitive guitar riff in the verses of Dive In reminds me of Garbage's Fix Me Now). Maybe when I've spent as much time with this album as I have with Primary Colours I'll find it harder to pick a favourite.

The other thing I really need to add is that this is a headphone album. Some albums put everything they have over the speaker, some albums save a little something special for the car, but there are a whole bunch of albums that really only relinquish their finest moments when you use headphones. I'm not talking about those little white buds you got with your iPod either. Proper, full ear covering, headphones (Sennheiser if you can get them). I'd listened to this album  over speakers, and through the dreaded white buds on my way to work, but it was only when I sat down to write this blog and put the headphones on that I really heard it.