Songs like the “Love Like A Sunset” duo and “Big Sun” sound like the stereophonic equivalent of a rainbow, full-bodied compositions that embrace a Wall-of-Sound production style but maintain Phoenix’s dedication to keeping it relatively danceable, resulting in something fresh in the group’s rather tired oeuvre. Perhaps most importantly, Wolfgang comes off as a very vibrant, modern-sounding record. Speaking of “Lasso,” not only does it have one of the best choruses on the record, the drums at the beginning always remind me of “Down With The Sickness.” Very odd. “Fences” switches between a down-tempo disco groove and Mars’ falsetto verses to a keyboard-heavy chorus with yet another on-the-money chorus, while on a song like “Lasso,” Mars sounds more focused and natural than ever before, his habit of over-enunciating lessened and his versatile range exploited nicely. While most of Wolfgang retains Phoenix’s relentless energy and effervescent melodies, the album as a whole feels more fleshed out, more organic sounding than INBLT, which at times sounded mechanical and clashing. Previous listeners of Phoenix will find little difference initially between Wolfgang and their 2006 work, It’s Never Been Like That. Both are bouncy slices of indie rock guaranteed to get feet tapping: “Lisztomania” rides a jittery beat and vocalist Thomas Mars’ oscillating vocals to a chorus perfectly memorable and perfectly simple, while “1901” mixes buzzing synths with a jangly chorus and a Mars’ echoing refrain of “fallin’” that begs to be sung along to. The one-two punch of first single “Lisztomania” and “1901” that opens the record is the kind of combo that could prevent the rest of the album from being heard. Maybe something was lost in translation over the Atlantic (sorry, I had to), but Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, their 4th major label effort, offers more than enough quirky synth-rock to finally give the band a hit on American shores. Lost in Translation wasn’t Garden State, and Phoenix certainly isn’t the Shins, but despite Phoenix’s ability to churn out irresistibly catchy pop singles, those same singles have never managed to translate into pop success. Phoenix has been chugging along dutifully for years ever since their taste-making role in Lost in Translation’s soundtrack, but fame has continued to elude the French foursome. Review Summary: Surely the high point of this band’s decade-long career.

Phoenix wolfgang amadeus phoenix album