Perfect Symmetry

Rolling Stone - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "'Spiralling' and 'Pretend That You're Alone' are irresistible dance-pop corkers, and 'Better Than This,' with a keyboard hook lifted from David Bowie's 'Ashes to Ashes,' is catchier yet." Spin - 3.5 stars out of 5 -- "On album three, Keane trick out their pretty piano melodies with tasty synths, booming rap beats, and fuzzy new-wave guitars." Entertainment Weekly - "[T]he band have suddenly, gratifyingly, found their mojo. 'Spiralling,' the opener and first single, is brash, ambitious, even sexy, built toweringly on strutting melody lines and anthemic vocal woohs." Clash - "PERFECT SYMMETRY is arguably one of the most unexpected and altogether arresting returns of the year....[The album] bewilders, enchants and entices..." Uncut - 3 stars out of 5 -- "It's ambitious, triumphantly executed stuff -- melodically, lyrically, Tim Oxley-Rice is a vastly superior songsmith to Chris Martin..."

One glance at the cover art of 2008's Perfect Symmetry, and it's clear that Keane has made a notable shift in its aesthetic, with geometric shapes replacing the more ornate, vintage look of past albums. Perfect Symmetry's music, not surprisingly, follows suit, with the band veering off in a striking synth-pop-influenced direction. While frontman Tom Chaplin's plaintive vocals provide the crucial thread of familiarity, the album's arrangements are generally beat-driven and keyboard-heavy, sometimes even edging on techno territory. Though the record isn't a complete departure (see the aching, piano-led "Love Is the End"), it still points to glossy, genre-bending makeover. ~ Eric Schneider|