Album of the week: 'Electric' by Pet Shop Boys

Pet Shop Boys

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In September, Pet Shop Boys released their 11th studio album, Elysium. It was rather coolly received, perhaps because it sounded suspiciously like the work of two men falling out of love with pop music.

And so it's a relief to find Pet Shop Boys not merely releasing a 12th studio album, but promoting it with a photograph featuring keyboardist Chris Lowe with his head entirely encased in a disco mirrorball. As statements of intent go, it's matched only by Electric's opening track, Axis, 51/2 minutes of writhing, Italo-disco-influenced synth chatter and vocodered vocals.

It's not the last time Electric sounds like Elysium's negative image. If the lyrics of Vocal appear to be a reaffirmation of the pair's belief in the power of pop music, the cover of Bruce Springsteen's The Last to Die, with its four-to-the-floor beat and Neil Tennant's vocal, bear witness to pop's adaptability.