Ratatat – Magnifique

A fusion of France and funk proves a winner...

Brilliantly named noise merchants Ratatat return with this, their fifth album – and what a fine time it is. The audacious guitars that made their debut such a winner are back, but this time they're blended with a more varied collection of sounds and genres. Despite recording time spent in Jamaica, it's French titans such as Daft Punk and Air that seem to be channelled on the Sunday-vibed title track and a handful of others. Loose, melodic, but with just enough bite, this is an album to soundtrack your dusks this summer.

With radio tuning samples (much reminiscent of Queens Of The Stone Age's 'Songs For The Deaf') often cropping up between tracks as well as a general retro-loving whimsy, these fourteen numbers are almost like finding a well worn VHS full of ecstatic moments and emotions. Single 'Cream on Chrome' displays the album's character; instrumental, guitar-led and with synth drops that'll get any fan of rhythm on the dancefloor.

'Drift' is three and half minutes of glorious chillwave (remember that, children?) minus the painfully self-aware attitude, and falls firmly of the side of good clean fun. If you ever wanted to know what a cat playing a slide guitar in Hawaii sounded like, look no further. 'Pricks Of Brightness' is all Brian May guitars and New York indie posture with some cheeky percussive touches. Bonkers in the best possible way.

'Supreme' offers a more mature sound and reveals the band's evolution, the slide making a welcome return as the synths take a step back to guide rather than lead the song. A gentleman knows when and when not to act, after all. The nostalgic mellowness of 'I Will Return' evokes some hazy teen drama where the heroine reads a lost lover's last letter with its drifting vocals and marching beat. It's dramatic, emotive, a little cheesy, but magnificently good fun…

8/10

Words: Sam Walker-Smart

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