Goldfrapp Dive Head First

After a spell of wandering around in the woods and getting in touch with her inner hippie on Seventh Tree, Goldfrapp has emerged from all things pastoral and gone straight back to the glitz, gloss, and glam of the city with her poppiest record to date, Head First. Head Firstsees Goldfrapp once again embracing the electronics and pop sheen that helped her get where she was before her wilderness adventure. With a keen eye on the dance floor and the stilettos back on, Goldfrapp is once again in stride and on target to conquer the pop charts once again. While I rather liked the rustic Goldfrapp, she is clearly at home on the dance floor and it's reflected in just about every song on Head First.

Channelling her inner Kylie and, dare I say it, Olivia Newton John this time around, Goldfrapp and her partner in crime, Will Gregory pile on the pop hooks, pop production, and pop shine; the results are stunning. As it turns out, all this inner pop diva stuff works out fantastically well for Goldfrapp as Head First is so easy to latch onto that it's almost like aural crack. Credit Gregory for being able to sculpt songs around Goldfrapp's seductively kittenish voice and make them glisten like diamonds; the tunes are all danceable, infectious and really quite good. Goldfrapp are able to accomplish this complete turnaround because of the obvious chemistry between it's members. In fact, it becomes pretty obvious over the course of this record that the chemistry between the two musicians is strong, priceless and has developed so well over the last decade or so that it's as if they can read each others mind; it's something that permeates each song on Head First and propels it into stratosphere. From the glammy electro pogo of, "Shiny and Warm," the nearly Xanadu-like ballad of, "Head First," to the 80's aerobic anthem in waiting, "I Wanna Life," this is Goldfrapp firing on all cylinders and hitting one out of the park yet again.

Head First is a refreshing return to electronic form and sees the duo cashing in on everything they've learned to date. This record should be a huge commercial success for them simply because of how produced and big it sounds. While I'll always prefer their edgier stuff like, Black Cherry, it's very easy to fall for the seductive shimmer of Head First simply because of how well structured and written it really is. My hope is that the band will gain back some of the edge that may have been lost in the woods back on Seventh Treebecause I fear a overly commercial Goldfrapp becoming something like Lady Ga Ga lite. Until that happens (if it does), I'll revel in the re-establishment of Goldfrapp as one of the coolest electro-tinged pop groups in the universe.