The first few seconds of Perfect Symmetry will probably lead to a pause, eject and blank stare when the label on the CD proves that this really is the product of British group Keane.
The latest from Keane casually dances away from the noisy electronica of 2006's Under the Iron Sea and differs from the piano-heavy Hopes and Fears of 2004 by far more than a simple shimmy. Even the abstract album art of Perfect Symmetry establishes the definite shift from whatever Iron Sea's teal-maned horses meant.
Overall, Perfect Symmetry might yield comparisons to the Killers, and these are not completely unwarranted. The Killers have produced upbeat rock using quite a few electronic tools. Keane do not try to emulate this from across the ocean; the inclusion of a piano and the exclusion of a gospel choir prove this. Nor do they follow fellow Brits Coldplay on the quest for a fuller"" sound. This new direction (destination: dance party) is exciting nonetheless.
Although piano rock was what made them famous and then ubiquitous, the obvious change from Keane's previous albums should make even the most steadfast naysayer tap at least a few toes. First single and album-opener ""Spiralling"" lives up to both those British-pop expectations. The immediate reaction is to dance, and there is no other appropriate response.
Keane's favorite theme, the difficulties of love, comfortably shares the spotlight with these new, more-involved melodies. Songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley describes the irrational urge to hold on to a relationship in ""The Lovers Are Losing."" The peppy bounce in ""You Haven't Told Me Anything"" diverts the listener from the fact that he has been anticipating this bad news: His relationship had been ""Stuck in the mud / Stuck in a rut."" And it is drummer Richard Hughes just as much as the synthesizer in ""Better Than This"" who pushes the listener to leave a current, unfulfilling relationship.
The emphasis on production rather than piano keys did not lead the group to ignore the quality of their lyrics. In what comes off as a nonsensical, lighthearted ditty, ""Pretend That You're Alone"" suggests it is time to ""Forget about fashion / Forget about the law"" because ""Love is just our way of looking out for ourselves / When we don't want to live alone.""
But Keane have not completely forgotten the ballads that made them famous. The simple piano line that accompanies the refrain of ""You Don't See Me"" drives home exactly how lovelorn singer Tom Chaplin feels. ""Playing Along"" may lead to a layered and developed end, but it begins with quiet vocals, and ""Love is the End"" is a ballad in every sense of the word. It just offers more than the classic Keane strategy of vocals and piano.
Perfect Symmetry is not 11 reworded versions of 2004's ""Somewhere Only We Know."" If anything, the glittering pieces of ""Somewhere Only We Know"" were cut into triangles, painted over and pasted together to form the new album art. This version of Keane should successfully solicit new listeners but leave previous fans happy, or at least happily distracted from the fact that they have yet to find ""the one.""
