In 2004 !!! (Chk Chk Chk) dwarfed almost every post-punk dance disco group around. After a forgetful debut, the nine man juggernaut unleashed the relentless and delirious ‘Louden Up Now’, a heady stew of sound that drew on everything from early Chicago acid house, to no wave, Krautrock and post punk politics, but !!! segued it together with an audacity, reckless abandon and unpredictability that was all their own. At the centerpiece was ‘Me and Giuliani Down By The School Yard’, a 9 minute opus combusting with ideas that nodded to almost every underground genre that has twisted dance floors in sweaty knots, all wrapped in a groove that unraveled like an endless ball of bass string.

Following up even just that single would be a feat in itself, and if !!! had just replicated ‘Louden Up Now’ they would have been thrown on the smoldering one trick pony pile. But their eagerly awaited follow up, ‘Myth Takes’, is a totally different beast; more song based, with density and tight structure, steely eyed focus and truly jaw dropping tunes. Touring with RHCP has no doubt taken the scope away from rocking clubs to blitzing festivals, and you feel that on every note on ‘Myth Takes’. There is still that relentless excavation for groove that !!! pursue, but it’s been clipped. They don’t need to play for 9 minutes now; they get you where they want you almost straight away before sucking you down their delirious whirlpool of sexfunk.

Opener and title track ‘Myth Takes’ proves progression instantly but offers ominous beginnings, Spaghetti western guitars scratch over pulped up Tarantino-esques grooves, and the mumbled vocals of “sha sha sha boogie” could soundtrack a rusty Reservoir Dogs Pontiac ride to a diamond heist. The whiskey soaked saloon stomp ‘Must Be the Moon’ is great rockabilly punk funk, recalling both The Clash and Butthole Surfers, while ‘A New Name’ is pop music soaked in shadows, gorgeous and sinister. !!!’s recent touring mates influence is so strong it borders on imitation on the otherwise engrossing ‘Sweet Life’, and the deep and stoned kaleidoscopes of sound that shapes ‘Break In Case Of Anything’ is truly mesmerising.

These are, of course, the bustling propulsive epics for which !!! are famous. Lead single ‘Heart of Hearts’ is just simply sublime, heading down the dark disco alley with a female siren penetrating an aural avalanche with “it’s got to be real love baby, you are such a precious thing”. It grinds to a halt halfway through, before crashing through to a gloriously chaotic finale. Same for the 8 minute plus and cheekily titled ‘Bend over Beethoven’, which is so locked up and tangled in its own dense, tense groove you think it could just go on forever.

What’s great about ‘Myth Takes’ is !!!’s burning desire to take their sound deeper into a cavern of creativity and push their own boundaries. Those looking for the stop-start jerk and devastating changes that defined ‘Louden Up Now’ will be perplexed, as this album is wider in scope and impressive in its reach. At the forefront of this formless faceless juggernaut is vocalist Nic Offer, who is truly impressive, as he writhes and gyrates from whoa to go, diving deep into his range and giving it his all. Make sure you see these guys when hit our shores in March, their live shows are legendary and ‘Myth Takes’ will no doubt be one of the albums of 2007.