05/22/09
Text: Nik Mercer
Röyksopp has, by all accounts, proven to be one of the best production teams in the world, rivaled only by maybe Daft Punk, the Chemical Brothers, Basement Jaxx, and a few others. The two Norwegians are certainly kicking ass in their native land...
Their infectious third full-length, Junior, is out now in the States (buy it, buy it, buy it!), and boy is it a winner. Everyone's in agreement that it's a far happier, sunnier, and cheerier effort than previous ones, but that's not the only thing of appeal at play. The LP merges Euro club music with sugary and accessible pop, incorporating a general sense of mystery and dark intensity all the while. Oh, and, as expected, the guys brought on some awesome talent to help them out with vocals. Karin Andersson (the Knife, Fever Ray, Anthem #38) whips out a few hits, and even, surprisingly, shows us that she can do falsetto, too, on the disco-infused "This Must Be It"; Lykke Li gets moody for the swooning nighttime ballad, "Miss It So Much"; and Robyn belts it out on a few songs (holy mackerel can that woman sing), most notably "The Girl and the Robot," which may very well be the best pop song of '09 so far.
The jam somewhat mechanically chugs along while choral vocals sooth the ear to introduce Robyn's vocal shredding. As the title implies, the tune's about a robotic boyfriend who doesn't seem to be willing to make compromise or commit to the relationship he's become involved in. The music video (above) just came out, and it... well, let's just say it takes the lyrics very literally. Robyn spends the entire duration of the video either on her bed in a bizarre frilly flapper sort of dress while looking incredibly pensive or checking for and writing text messages. Our favorite Swedish chanteuse winds up getting the hots for what appears to be Asimo's cousin, feels super down because he's a robot and therefore cannot return her adoration, and, superfluously winds up taking a pregnancy test. The good news is that she ain't giving birth to anything mechanical any time soon.
