Album review: Broken Bells – After the Disco

A record that sounds akin to a 1970s soft-rock band rushing out contractually-obligated B-sides.

Broken Bells

After the Disco

(Columbia)

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Eagerly anticipated collaborations can often be anticlimactic, as gifted performers suffer a sort of reverse alchemy and nullify each other's talents. Not so, Broken Bells' early offerings: the intriguing pairing of The Shins' singer-songwriter James Mercer and the former hip-hop producer Danger Mouse gelled so seamlessly that the latter now regards their partnership as "my main gig". It's slightly odd, then, that their second record is so much less satisfying than the eponymous debut they made back in 2010, when still just a side project. Even the title suggests a disappointing comedown. Melancholy sci-fi was reportedly the aim, but all too often After the Disco actually sounds akin to a 1970s soft-rock band rushing out contractually obligated B-sides – Leave It Alone in particular, while Medicine has a noticeable whiff of Crowded House. Fans of mainstream radio rock may well find much to revel in here, but only intermittently (Perfect World's Stereolab-like rhythms; Holding on for Life's fabulous Bee Gees-aping harmonies; some joyous future-funk on The Changing Lights) does this effort really meet our expectations.