GLASVEGAS - Euphoric /// Heartbreak

If it were 1984, no one would be surprised by "Euphoric /// Heartbreak", the second album by Scotland's Glasvegas: its imposing sonic architecture would be hailed as elegiac, its pristine run of hit singles as genuine proof of talent. In truth, years of low-key releases have led listeners away from the logic of pop-rock that embraces both passion and lightness, so much so that immediacy is no longer seen as a virtue but as an uncertain step on which to stumble.

No need to worry, though: Glasvegas are still possessed by a visceral, authentic inspiration, one that simply seeks to touch the torment of a generation living out a decontextualized, uncertain sexuality. That makes it hard to accept them as heirs to Jesus & Mary Chain, but easy to see them as one of the few bands capable of rising above the provincialism of new pop music.

The dreams of James Allan and his Glasvegas have turned to color on "Euphoric /// Heartbreak": the sturdy chromatic grays of their excellent debut now demand to be heard, contaminating their wall of sound with tones richer in emphasis.

Like a sci-fi remake, Glasvegas's music revisits nightmares and torments that take your breath away and seek new blood. A single leitmotif animates the tracks — doubt over desires, regret and memories — sliding by like dreams with no actors, yearning for emotional rebirth.

Cascades of synths over tracks of brooding romanticism produce a sound less polished and less faint than the debut's; the riffs show some lyrical slackening, but even the more vulnerable songs like "Shine Like Stars" and "Dream Dream Dreaming" remain solidly anchored in emotion.

The presence of Jonna Löfgren, the newly recruited drummer, is key to understanding Glasvegas's new sonic identity: the melancholic "Whatever Hurts You Through The Night" tells of women and lesbianism, referencing Thelma & Louise, while cascading synths flow over soft rhythmic foundations, almost a marriage between the Ultravox of "Vienna" and the Cocteau Twins of "Heaven Or Las Vegas".

Glasvegas' pop sound is undeniably tied to 80s sonorities, a touch of U2, traces of the early Echo & The Bunnymen, but what remains fundamental is their rock 'n' roll attitude from the Phil Spector era, as heard in tracks like "You" and "The World Is Yours".

Homosexuality, as the emotional core of a generation, concentrates many of the songs' themes, pushing James Allan to pay closer attention to his words: the vocals become less wordy and more descriptive, the weeping is now a scream, the tenderness is despair, while shoegaze structures merge with electronics that turn the adolescent verve of the debut into a hurdle race towards maturity.

"I Feel Wrong (Homosexuality, Pt. 1)" and "Stronger Than Dirt (Homosexuality, Pt. 2)" confront the risk of predictability, speaking instead with unexpected detachment and without condescension about different sexualities and homosexual passions, an insidious emotional wealth stretched out between pulsing bass sounds and synths, which make the rhythm sway with a pleasant lyricism, freeing the words from their emotional cages.

I don't think "Euphoric /// Heartbreak" is destined to win over the band's detractors — if anything, the album displays an authority and energy that might have some crying betrayal of their first musical incarnation. Glasvegas' music remains anchored to an emotional, engaging pop vision, so much so that it's no surprise to catch echoes of Duran Duran in "The World Is Yours" or of Depeche Mode in some of the sonic choices.

Glasvegas entrust ambitious songs like "Euphoria, Take My Hand" to the skilled hands of Flood, who reinvents their soundscape, while James Allan seems to sell off both his art and his affections in "Change", bringing in his mother's voice. Whether this is the result of cunning or naivety isn't entirely clear yet, but the band still possesses the gift of creativity they showed from the start; the bolder tone of their second album certainly opens up new horizons, and their music remains anchored to the emotional force of a romanticism that can ensnare you, even if it can't leave you completely indifferent.

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13/04/2011