Extended Play Two Review

07/13/2005 6:51 AM, AMG


The basic elements behind the chanteuse-led electronic outfit have been meted out so clearly now that a band deploying little to no imaginative effort can still nail a recording deal if the production values are kept up (see Mandalay). Such is not the case with Broadcast, who put together this EP on the heels of their well-received debut LP The Noise Made By People. Trish Keenan's retro vocals atop the meticulously constructed modern backdrop create a vibe that sounds as relevant to the era of its creation as it does to the soundtrack of To Sir With Love. "Illumination" is fantastically somber and elegant, a piece you could hope to record in a bedroom after the end of a long U.K./European tour (bassist James Cargill's bedroom to be specific). More menacing is the Aphex Twin-style strains of "Unchanging Window/Chord Simple." But for all tension created by their noir lounge cum digital pop formula, Broadcast's mission seems to be making beauty and intoxicating atmospheres their most paramount of concerns. ~ JoE Silva, All Music Guide