Fischerspooner - 'Odyssey' (EMI) Released 04/04/05

After nearly bankrupting the Ministry Of Sound imprint with their excellent but somewhat overblown debut ‘#1’ Casey Spooner and Warren Fischer deliver the goods (for EMI) on their sophomore outing ‘Odyssey’. A lot has changed in Fischerspooner world it would seem. The stark futurist tone of ‘#1’ has been eschewed in favour of all an altogether warmer sound, Madonna collaborator and all round electro wizard Mirwais has been drafted in and boy can you tell…

Opening salvo ‘Just Let Go’ rocks like a psychiatric patient without medication and despite its lyrical naivety (“Deep in the tsunami… Buried” slightly misguided to say the least) has the urgent slap of an LCD Soundsystem number. It’s not just the initial punch that dazzles here though; the prevailing theme of organic electronica is really quite breathtaking. The snaps and glitches clatter gaily (in both senses of the word) to create a blissful synergy of style and (chemical) substance. It is almost impossible to listen to this record without dancing with your hands on your hips and a pout on your kipper. Mirwais’ influence is most obvious on career best ‘Never Win’ which sounds akin to The Dandy Warhols only with more lip stick and better drugs. This is followed closely (in every way) by the magnificent ‘A Kick In The Teeth’ with its almost Postal Service melancholy and precise harmonies this choon is stunning. The track builds and swirls to create a psychedelic crescendo that engages as much as it uplifts, and wouldn’t feel out of place on The Chemical Brothers dance masterpiece ‘Surrender’.

There are low points later on the record unfortunately ‘We Need A War’ is lyrically pompous, sample lyric “We need a war to show them we can do it, whenever they say we need a war…” monkeys and typewriters spring instantly to mind. Worryingly these words were lifted from the late, great writer and human rights activist Susan Sontag. It seems they were playing with forces they obviously do not understand - -or at least respect. ‘Wednesday’ is another weak link as it grinds along with no real passion or conviction. These are isolated incidents on what is an almost perfect body of work and album finale ‘Circle (Vision Creation New Sun)’ is a treat. A cover of a track by Japanese noiseniks ‘The Boredoms’ its bubbling synths peak and rise into a genuinely thrilling spectacle.

With electronica back on the right path and the obvious financial might and marketing power of EMI the year could belong to Warren Fischer & Casey Spooner’s ‘Odyssey’. Fischerspooner they have finally ‘Emerge-d’…No miming this time though boys eh?