Joy Division weren't exactly a laugh riot back in their day, and
if Editors do anything to distinguish themselves from the
numerous JD acolytes that emerged in the middle of this decade,
it's that they actively push an image of being the least fun
band of the bunch. Nevertheless, their 2005 debut The Back Room
had singles like "Blood" and "Munich" that were tightly-coiled
enough to honor their post-punk influences while being hooky
enough to serve as a good entry-level primer. But like so many
of their peers (I'm looking at you, British Sea Power), by album
two they didn't let loose so much as get bloated, showing the
smug healing powers of victory lap-era U2 without the years of
artistic restlessness that earned it. Nonetheless, they play
stadiums, so they're hardly the most likely candidates to do a
complete about-face this far in. So give 'em credit here for
going a long way towards dismantling what we've come to know
about Editors. Chris Urbanowicz's windy tremolo riffs are mostly
forsaken in favor of def