The Geometroid

After delighting us with one of 1999's best singles and perfect pop moments, 'The Ballad of Ray Suzuki', prodigious and prolific couple Stuart and Karn deliver another wildly eclectic and electric collection of slick technoid pop. Stuart David has now left Belle and Sebastien to switch attentions to this celebrated project, and those who delighted in the moog and electronica invested pop adventures on last year's Up a Tree album will understand exactly why.

These heartfelt tales of romance and downright looperdom are a perfect anecdote to the rather one dimensional oeuvre of everyone's favourite sado-pop band.

The Geometrid announces itself with breathtaking style on the indie crossover disco shuffle of 'Mondo '77' - a knob twiddling exercise featured an over-excited Francis McDonald voiceover. The beautiful 'On The Flipside' is the first instalment of pure pop bliss and the first taste of high-summer to be heard on any record released so far this year. However the 'Modem Song' is a slight nose-dive - an over-irritating exercise in incorporating the sound of modems and lyrics about online culture that was commissioned by Internet company, but somehow considered too good by these loopers to be wasted on corporate exploits. Next time take the money and run.

Far better is the off-kilter introspection and celebration of everyday life that is 'All These Things', and the valedictory uplifting blast of brass-fuelled poppiness and life-affirming soulfulness on 'Money Hair'. What exactly Stuart means by the command "cut your money hair!" is a little vague, but who cares? With this perfect pre-summer anthem of swoonsome hope and prospective romance at your side you really couldn't ask for anything more.

Especially not the new Belle and Sebastien LP.