Belle and Sebastian - Girls in Peacetime Want To Dance
Ultimately, this album is written for their fans
Belle and Sebastian are attempting something inevitably ambitious coming from their background of groundbreaking pop music. The opening track leads with 80's synths, which subtly add towards the overall atmosphere and general tone of the song - melodic angst. Ultimately, this album is written for their fans, which is to their detriment as at times it is impossible to see the direction of songs, exhibited predominately in Enter Sylvia Plath. This album fails to flow in a cohesive manner; whether this is intentional or not is questionable, as there are hidden gems woven through the confusion, most notably seen in The Party Line and Perfect Couples. It is with these tracks that Belle and Sebastian come into their own. Despite this, Girls in Peacetime Want to Dance fails to breakthrough the pre-existing barriers set by the band themselves. In essence, this album plateaus the band rather than exceeding pre-mediated expectations.
5.5/10