The Horrors - Primary Colours

Given the backlash The Horrors endured after releasing debut album 'Strange House' in 2007, the band had only two options of where to go next; call it a day and return to the day job, or reinvent themselves.

Second album 'Primary Colours' follows the latter path, but not even the most dedicated of followers could have predicted the metamorphosis of the band's sound. Making the transformation from the 60s garage and organ swirls of their first full-lengther, 'Primary Colours' is a markedly different amalgamation of motorik Kraut rhythms, dream-pop, punk, scuzz-rock, drone, shoegaze and vintage electronics.

At large, the group pay homage to the classic bands of yesteryear - Spacemen 3, Suicide, Jesus & Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine, Silver Apples, Can and Neu! - but there is a sense of 'newness' to the fusion, despite the influence of vintage greats.

Some things haven't changed too much; the overall feel is still typically bleak and manic. The Horrors offer layer after layer of guitars, organs, feedback and the claustrophobic vocal drone of frontman Faris Rotter. But unlike the often eye-rolling pretentiousness of 'Strange House', there is a much denser, warmer atmosphere at work here - largely credited to Portishead's Geoff Barrow who produces the record.

The Horrors don't always get the forward-thinking ideas right - there are occasional moments of pastiche. But as songwriters, they have developed tenfold and also brought in the right amount of experimentation. 'Primary Colours' is guaranteed to leave a few jaws hitting the ground.