Midnight Shift + Singles

The breezy, jazzy rhythms and stripped-down new wave of Dislocation Dance overstay their welcome on Midnight Shift. Indie connoisseurs will wolf down the band's spare instrumentation and upbeat, naïve lyrics; however, Midnight Shift lacks consistency. The group sounds inspired on some tracks and cruising on automatic pilot on others. Dislocation Dance is comprised of talented musicians, capable of flinging themselves from one genre to another, often within the same song. On "Baby Blue," they giddily leap back and forth between '60s Motown and country. Nevertheless, for all of their eclecticism, Dislocation Dance is indebted to late-'70s and early-'80s post-punk acts — just check out the Friends Again-esque funky riffs of "Show Me," the Joy Division-like icy percussion of "Here Comes Love" and "Mr. Zak," and the Pale Fountains-ish acoustic pop of "Bottle of Red Wine." (Since trumpet player Andy Diagram was also a member of the Pale Fountains, the last shouldn't be a surprise.) When Dislocation Dance's jumble of musical styles somehow clicks, they charm the ears. The horn-powered "Show Me" is unbelievably catchy, especially the 12" version added to Vinyl Japan's 2000 reissue of the album. "Tyrannies of Fun" illuminates the LP-like spring sunshine with its soaring violins and halcyon trumpet. There's also a terrific electronic cover of the Beatles' "We Can Work It Out" at the end of Vinyl Japan's version of Midnight Shift that could've been a disaster. Dislocation Dance is never predictable here. [The remastered LTM/Boutique NL release of the album follows the Vinyl Japan edition's track listing, but with the addition of the original version of "San Michelle."]