I have a weird relationship with electronic-leaning dance pop. I don't dislike it by any stretch, but I'll be the first to admit that unless the hooks are top of the line, I don't really gravitate to it in the same way as I might country or folk or hip-hop or indie rock that aim for tighter lyricism, or subgenres within metal or electronic music where lyrics are perfunctory in comparison with musical experimentation or raw power.
What this means is that outside of what I cover on the pop charts, I don't tend to have an encyclopedic knowledge of the type of pop that's more likely to chart on the dance charts first, especially if they originate in the UK and aren't strictly in the synth or indie-pop spheres. In other words, it was a real learning experience digging into Goldfrapp, an English electronic duo with whom I had only ever heard in passing - it's not like they ever had a significant impact on the Hot 100. Beginning around the turn of the millennium, they may have drawn on trip-hop, but they took their electronic style across a good half dozen genres over the course of the next decade, from synthpop and glam rock to ambient tones and even noir cabaret, blending retro glam with new, sleek electronic touches. And yet while I found a fair number of their singles enjoyable with Allison Goldfrapp's sensuous cooing set against sharper electronic grooves, I'd also say they're the definition of a singles act for me, as the albums could definitely drag, never quite being sharp enough in the writing or experimentation to stay ahead of the curve. And sure, that wasn't an issue when the most they were compared against was Portishead in the early 2000s, but by the time this brand of electronic dance pop dominated around the turn of the decade, it felt like Goldfrapp was playing catchup again. So after making somewhat of a return to basics with Tales Of Us that got the lukewarm reception it deserved, they did the next best thing: took four years off, and came back with a record that promised to synthesize all of their influences into a new electro-pop record. And hell, given the dreary mess that currently comprises modern pop on the Hot 100, I could use a spark of life: so does Goldfrapp pull it off on Silver Eye?
