The music of Belgian electro-rock duo
Vive la Fête always evoked the spirit of unapologetic, a bit decadent fun -- after all, they are not called "Viva Party!" for nothing. On
Jour de Chance, their fifth full-length, all the usual elements of their trashy, distinctly European synth-driven rock are in place -- flat drum machine beats, pulsating synthesizers, shards of post-punk guitar, spoiled Barbie doll vocals. It certainly sounds like
Vive la Fête is doing what they do best, yet in the end
Jour de Chance comes off strangely empty. Sure, a certain degree of blankness was always apparent in their music, only before it used to be a part of
Vive la Fête's stylistic approach infused with a great deal of irony, whereas now it simply turned into the real thing. The band's creative juices still flow freely enough for them to come up with some compelling tracks -- the steady head rush of "Mais," dueling shout outs of "Une par Une," glorious plastic silliness of appropriately titled "Stupid Femme." The uncharacteristically tender, strings-laden "La Route" is another pleasant standout. But most of the record sounds uninspired and forced, as if the band had come to realize that their titular party pretty much sucks, yet try to do everything to prove otherwise.