I was surprised I loved this album as much as I did, though it shouldn’t be surprising I guess as they seem to get better and better on each release, becoming more focused and confident in their sound. Their first album Untitled was a complete mess, but resulted in two fantastic songs, ‘Too Young’ (which featured on the Lost In Translation soundtrack), and ‘If I Feel Better’. The rest was a true mess, and though the potential was established, the sour taste made me skip their follow up album Alphabetical. Then all hell broke loose with the release of Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, reaching critical and mainstream success worldwide, and even though I again thought there were very strong songs – it was a bit scattered and incomplete. Frankly, this new album Bankrupt! is also incomplete. But the vision and the sound is there, and the first four tracks are so incredibly strong, that although it ultimately makes the entire album unbalanced, it’s just so good that it deserves to be in the tops of the year. I became interested in checking this one out funny enough not after their first single, but after hearing them on Saturday Night Live, which historically doesn’t showcase the best that any particular band has to offer. But for me it worked for Phoenix, and the second song they performed got me very interested. Whenever I listen to this album the only word that I think can describe it perfectly is effervescent. There is just something in the production that makes it sound and feel like it’s carbonated, bubbly, fizzy, and completely effervescent from the first track to the last. And I don’t say this because of the “Asian sounds” in the first single ‘Entertainment’ (and in the Korean shot video) – but I think the band carried over an experience or a cue from having their very first single as a band being used in the Japanese-set Lost In Translation, as this album feels like being in Japan. I don’t know why exactly or how to describe it, but that feeling of walking around Osaka and all it’s bright, colorful, otherworldly and futuristic settings, that most Japanese cities seem to offer, is reflected in this album’s songwriting and production. There’s a joyous, life-affirming sound here, laid on top of this international high fashion vibe (see the above ‘Trying To Look Cool’). There’s so much production on Bankrupt! that it took some time to let the songs seep through. I didn’t even put in an effort, but whenever I’d see it on my computer or in my car, I’d throw it on, and I began to appreciate it more and more on each listen, and I’m thankful I did, as it’s a really fun, optimistic, catchy as hell album. Of course their penchant for getting lost with weird meandering tracks and sound collages is still here, but they kept it to one song (the title track funny enough), so it’s much easier to skip than albums past. There is an incredible album waiting to come out of these guys I can just sense it – and if it isn’t the next one I would be very surprised. In the meantime, this is their high mark, and it comes highly recommended.