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When Danish pop act Alphabeat first came to the British shores and charted in the top ten with their pop gem ‘Fascination’ they were easily able to show why pop critics have been turning their attention to Scandinavia (political not geographical) for the big names in pop. With company such as Robyn, Annie, Röyksopp and Margaret Berger, it appeared that an invasion was on its way. However, the invasion never materialised and after the critical plaudits stopped falling at the feet of debut album This Is Alphabeat, the group disappeared from the British radar. However, with This Is Alphabeat came a statement that here stood a group who were able to make fantastic pop and it appears that, upon the release of their sophomore album, their destiny has been fulfilled.
During their time away, Alphabeat have decided to cast off the adornments of cheese and twee-pop that have lead to some critics being unable to take them seriously. On The Beat Is… (originally entitled The Spell in their native Denmark), they have decided instead to buck the current trend of 80s nostalgia by focusing their efforts on 90s nostalgia, a move which cannot help but make everyone over the age of twenty feel extremely ancient that the music of their youth (e.g. Black Box, Snap, N-Trance etc.) is now the subject of revivalism.
Such a move, to produce music that no longer seeks to become a guilty pleasure, really should feel like a betrayal to their fan-base, but the way that Alphabeat have carried this is so organic that after a few listens to The Beat Is…, it becomes obvious that this was the next logical step. Aside from a slight genre shift, the most notable difference is the increased presence of the male singer on most of the songs, however the token-girl still takes the lead (which handily leads into the second noticeable change: her attitude, confidence and an improvement in her technical performance).
Aside from fifth track ‘Chess’, which just refuses to go anywhere, the tracks are prime dance floor material with ‘Always Up With You’, ‘Hole In My Heart’, ‘The Beat Is’ and ‘The Spell’ already accumulating a plethora of remixes. In such an album it is hard to pick out a standout track since throughout the run of the record the interest of any self-professed pop fan is readily engaged. However, at a push, for those who want an introduction to the great new Alphabeat sound, ‘DJ’ and ‘Hole In My Heart’ make for great listening and are perfect segues into the rest of the album.
With Alphabeat currently supporting Lady Gaga on her UK tour, the hope is that their popularity should be on the increase; even stripped of their cheese they are still a formidable force within their genre. Pop-attitude never sounded so much fun.
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