Scissor Sisters
Magic Hour

Reviewing the latest from Scissor Sisters here on Debaser, just to see the effect it will have? This is called playing with fire, but it's a fascinating challenge. I am no longer afraid of anything, and I believe I have earned enough credibility to allow myself this indulgence. I have followed this quirky band with affection since the days of “I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’,” "sponsored" none other than by Elton John, and, at least in my humble opinion, in today’s chilling and desolated mainstream pop scene, they stand with dignity. They know what they're doing, sometimes cleverly borrowing as in the case of "Mary," a carbon copy of Falco's "Jeanny," or "I Don’t Feel…" which owes something to ABBA's “If It Wasn’t For The Night,” but always maintaining good levels of listenability and enjoyable nonchalance.

 The self-titled debut album from 2004 and especially "Ta-Dah" from 2006, their "masterpiece," were good blends of pop, dance, electronica, and a pinch of tasty glam rock. Then the plodding and mediocre "Night Work" drew them out of my attention sphere, but, also attracted by the beautiful cover, I decided to give a chance to this "Magic Hour." It was a choice I don’t regret: this fourth effort by Jake Shears, Ana Matronic, Babydaddy & co. offers the listener a bit of genuine and carefree pop-dance tinged with electronics: balanced, sparkling, tasteful, without excess; slightly inferior to "Ta-Dah" and not as varied and colorful, but more homogeneous and elegant, as much as SCS can be. Unlike "Night Work," here in "Magic Hour," there is more than just space for dancefloor rhythms, there is more variety as shown by the delightful carefree summer cheerfulness of "San Luis Obispo" or the engaging pop rock of "Baby Come Home" along with excellent ballads like an intense "The Years Of Living Dangerously" and the melancholic "The Secret Life Of Letters,” far superior to the whiny “Fire With Fire” from the previous album, all songs that highlight the excellent form of Jake Shears, a charismatic frontman with a certain class, lively, in tune and versatile (ahem…), far above and more intelligent than many self-proclaimed songwriters and singers of new, horrendous, rock bands.

  The core of "Magic Hour" is still dance, which finds its fullest expression in the highly enjoyable "Keep Your Shoes On,” where the voices of Jake and the fascinating Ana Matronic intertwine over an excellent framework of bass and electronics, essential and not intrusive; but also the rapped "Shady Love” is a pleasant listen, as well as "Self Control,” which blatantly cites the evergreen "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, and the midtempo "Best In Me,” which further underscores the excellent work of the likable beatmaker Babydaddy, showcasing a nice, easy, and immediate chorus. Overall, less successful are the overly emphatic single "Only The Horses” and "Let’s Have A Kiki,” a rough and brash copy of “Keep Your Shoes On,” but nothing terrible if one considers what the "competition" offers.

 Overall, whether due to my affection for them or due to the absolute lack of minimally credible competition, if I had to point to a hypothetical extraterrestrial a project that has positively stood out in the pop-dance realm in the third millennium, I would have no doubts about choosing Scissor Sisters who, with "Magic Hour," seem to have definitively chosen the path of quality, of a dance closer to the Bee Gees and Giorgio Moroder than that dreadful Lady Gaga; continuing this way, maybe with a pinch of glam rock, which they have already shown they can do well, they are bound to receive further esteem and words of appreciation from me, although I notoriously enjoy some of their musical acquaintances very little. But after all, nobody's perfect.