The Horrors' 2007 debut album, Strange House gained a fair amount of critical acclaim. That said, there have always been more articles about the band's hairdos and eyeliner than their music-making ability and the fact that they've changed up their sound and appeal says a lot. For those of us who reviled from the camp-goth kitsch of Strange House, Primary Colours is the surprise album of the year (this is in no way a disclaimer that their gigs won’t be filled with gender confused youths and “fashion” students).

The Horrors have certainly picked up a few new tricks and mellowed their sound somewhat since 2007 and Primary Colours delivers a surprising amount of melodious and catchy tunes. The band also do well to mix-up the driving force behind each track, alternating between heavy synth-and-base drives to straight-up guitar to keep their pop structures ticking over. The influences behind the sound of the album is also worn on the sleeve, as nods to Joy Division, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Cramps and a healthy dose of shoe-gaze are all flaunted. But rather than just sounding like a big muck-up of all these artists the album carves a nice little place for its own sound.

Tracks such as “Who Can Say” and the title track “Primary Colours” are rife with warm fuzzy distorted tones (it’s like getting an aural hug!) and lay a great foundation for other tracks on the album to explore other sounds. In contrast to these milder tones are “New Ice Age” and “Three Decades” which bring the band back to their roots of more frantic and abrasive uses of screeching synth and guitars. This is definitely where some listeners will have trouble with The Horrors. While the songs themselves have definite pop sensibilities and excel when it comes to nuanced structure, the use of such abrasive noise-rock might seem obtuse. Then again you could get your eardrums to grow a pair of balls and never use the word obtuse ever again.

Another element which remains from their debut effort are the lyrics which refuse to drift very far from typical teen-angst territory; “and I kissed her with a kiss that could only mean, goodbye”. Don’t worry, it’s all digestible and it’s not as if socio-political commentary would tie in with the sound anyway.

The main reason why Primary Colours stands out as an excellent album is simple: Consistency.

Firstly, tying the whole show together at the production end of things is Geoff Barrow, who does a brilliant job of incorporating his experience with Portishead into the mix. Needless to say, the result is an unrelentingly haunting atmosphere which prevails throughout the album, from the hollow-sounding synth to the echo-laden vocals.

Secondly is consistency in its truest sense. Not one piece of filler clutters this album. Not every track is a masterpiece, although a few are close, but most importantly, none of them refuse to carry their weight.

- Stephen Tuohy

Check out the official video for The Horrors' "Who Can Say" below: