Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance
Belle and Sebastian
(Matador)
Three stars
It's been five years since Belle and Sebastian's last studio album. For this ninth opus, the band have hired an outside producer – Ben H Allen III – and he helps them expand their sound. Fans needn't worry – he hasn't taken them too far off message and they remain flag bearers for indie daydreaming. The opening track, Nobody's Empire, deals with singer Stuart Murdoch's struggle with chronic fatigue syndrome. It's classic B&S and he says it's his most personal song to date. Elsewhere, a love of dance grooves is evident. The Party Line enters pure funk territory and Enter Sylvia Plath confounds its title with a Stock, Aitken and Waterman-esque, Eurohouse feel. Jazz rhythms come to the fore in The Everlasting Muse with a nod to Balkan Beat polka sounds. It all makes for an intriguing mixture spelling the band won't simply release more of what's expected.
cnewbould@thenational.ae
