A decade into their career, Manchester quartet the Courteeners bring a little levity with their fifth LP, Mapping the Rendezvous. Combining sonic touchstones from throughout their catalog -- angular post-punk, neo-Brit-pop, and polished new wave -- they produced one of their strongest works, as addictive as anything on Anna and Concrete Love. Like contemporaries Kaiser Chiefs and Two Door Cinema Club, they've evolved from their indie rock early days, favoring melody and pop-leaning numbers that inspire more dancing than rocking out. Rendezvous is a lot of fun, especially on bouncy ditties like "Tip Toes," "The Dilettante," "Not for Tomorrow," "No One Will Ever Replace Us," and the Phoenix-lite "Modern Love." Highlights include the devilishly cool "Lucifer's Dreams," one of a handful of urgent dance-rock songs that recall the aforementioned Kaisers, and the sexy "Kitchen," a throwback that sounds like Robert Palmer fronting INXS (or simply a muscular version of the 1975). Falcon fans will appreciate slower moments like the Morrissey-esque "De la Salle" and "Most Important," a touching ode that combines the tribal drums of Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "Maps" with the Courteeners' own "Lullaby." A nod to their Brit-pop influences is found on the grand "Finest Hour," a slow-building track that ends with a fanfare worthy of Blur's "The Universal." Mapping the Rendezvous might not appease those fans still waiting for the return of St. Jude, but eight years after their debut, the Courteeners have grown up and streamlined their sound, resulting in a tight, energetic blast of dance-rock.
© Neil Z. Yeung /TiVo