Ladytron

Velocifero (Nettwerk)

By Emily Becker
Published: June 3rd, 2008 | 1:16pm

Ladytron must be tired of hearing all of the chilly metaphors we critics use to describe their music. For their fourth full-length, Velocifero, they shot the video for “Ghosts,” the record’s first single, in a desert. It's almost as if they are distancing themselves from Witching Hour (2005) and the video for its first single, "Destroy Everything You Touch," which was shot in a snowstorm. Still, Ladytron fails to radiate warmth, but who cares? What we want to know is: “Can Velocifero live up to Witching Hour?”

In the battle of the singles, the nod goes to Witching Hour because there is no one tune on the new release that eviscerates the airwaves like “Destroy Everything You Touch.” “Ghosts” is almost tender in comparison. Despite the absence of standout tracks, there aren't any weak ones on Velocifero — it is their most complete work to date. Even Witching Hour had a few songs that felt like filler (“Beauty,” “All the Way”).

Velocifero is solid, and offers up a few new twists as well. The ferocious “Black Cat” kicks off the record with the darkest of vibes as Mira Aroyo sings in Bulgarian; “Black Cat” combines the almost-frightening darkness of the Knife with a Salt-n-Pepa beat; Helen Marnie, who sings lead on “Ghosts,” has a gentler, higher voice that contrasts with Aroyo’s earthy growl; likewise, “Season of Illusion” and “They Gave You a Heart, They Gave You a Name” show off the yin-yang quality of Marnie and Aroyo’s paired voices.

“I’m Not Scared” has a shoegazey drone, while “Runaway” emphasizes a dirty synth bass line. “Burning Up” couches the tongue-in-cheek lyric “I wrote a protest song about you, about you / I cheated gravity to chase you, to chase you” in shimmering dance swagger. “Kletva,” also sung by Aroyo in Bulgarian, revamps a piece from a Bulgarian children’s movie.

Several of the songs wear the Depeche Mode mantle (“Predict the Day,” “Big Blue”), picking up where Witching Hour left off. The record closes with the deep melody of “Versus," a track that balances male and female vocals — an unusual choice for Ladytron, whose male members Reuben Wu and Daniel Hunt usually leave the singing to the ladies.

Ladytron, whose very name is borrowed from Roxy Music’s debut, is not afraid to nick bits and pieces from other bands and then mold them to suit. While some listeners may prefer the breakthrough sound of Witching Hour, or even the electroclashy emptiness of 2002's Light & Magic and 2001's 604, with Velocifero, Ladytron continues to move listeners to embrace the cold.

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