Elefant

The Black Magic Show

[4/5] Confidence–along with smart, brooding romanticism–is one thing Elefant have never lacked; the critical praise heaped on the NYC quartet’s 2003 debut album, Sunlight Makes Me Paranoid, proves as much. But on their follow-up, The Black Magic Show, Elefant defy even their own poised reputation, sounding as self-assured as a dude who’s just nabbed a date with his dream girl. Fleshed-out songs about twisted love and hopeless attraction burst with layers of chiming guitars, atmospheric keyboards and the band’s most distinctive element, the swaggering lounge-singer vocals of frontman Diego Garcia. Handclaps, skittering synths and stomping riffs make “Uh Oh Hello” a shoulda-been ’80s club hit; “The Lunatic” sounds like David Bowie at his Scary Monsters peak; and the album’s final track, “Don’t Wait,” ranks alongside the Smiths’ best work–and like nearly every song here, it’s just as epic and memorable.
(KEMADO/HOLLYWOOD) Annie Zaleski