It’s so hard not to get swept up in hype. Five years ago when James Murphy bundled into popular culture with the deliciously laconic ‘Losing My Edge’, every critic and music enthusiast was ready to crown him and his maverick DFA label as messiahs of neo disco cool. With LCD Soundsystem’s uneven – but thrilling – self titled debut in 2005, Murphy and fellow analogue terrorist Tim Goldsworthy proved that they might live beyond the punk funk hype and create something memorable; moving beyond loving – but obvious – reference checks and tongue in cheek record store clerk jibes, to hit a level of musicality and creativity that could establish them as genuine artists. Anticipation for their somophore album has been feverous to say the least, and the release of ‘Sound Of Silver’ has been met with salivating praise. Is ‘Sound Of Silver’ worth the all the wide eyed superlatives? Are Murphy’s messianistic accolades justified? Absolutely!

‘Sound Of Silver’ is truly brilliant. It’s the sound of effortless genius unleashing, Murphy blurring the lines of influence and creativity and embracing space (something almost extinct in an era shying away from albums in favor of singular downloads). Murphy is understandably misty eyed about this, for ‘Sound Of Silver’ is a true “album”, with heart and soul poured into to every second. It is, as you would expect, meticulously produced, with precise drums and warm pads that unfold a calculating, nervous funk. But that by no means dictates a lack of emotion (especially with the LCD ‘only analogue’ ethos), Murphy’s impassioned Byrne/Bowie-esque croons and yelps hit dizzying new heights. Lyrically ‘Sound Of Silver’ is much stronger, Murphy broadening scope from satiric stabs at US foreign policy and its effects on the national psyche, to forlorn whispers of hope in the midst of an inevitable relationship breakdown, to Murphy’s tried and true self effacing commentary on being an aging hipster.

The serpentine disco of dubious opener ‘Get Innocuous’ hints post debut progression, with slithering analogue patters and creeping arpeggios that eventually give way to Murphy’s distant droning, shimmering, bleak rhythms and metallic dance guitars. The straight forward funk and plastic soul screech of ‘Time To Get Away’ is a cowbell laden homage to the jerk-funk of Talking Heads, and lead single ‘North American Scum’ hints at darker corners with its low slung grit and snappy anti-US agenda. The album absolutely soars through the middle, particularly on ‘Someone Great’, a deeply felt ode to love and trauma with twinkling melodies and gentle drums that blind you like bright morning sun. Murphy sings with Zen-like calm from the eye of a post-breakup hurricane; “I miss the way we used to argue, locked in the basement. To tell the truth I saw it coming, the way you were breathing”. It is the emotional core of the album and its most incredible moment. ‘All My Friends’ flexes a well oiled indie groove over a panting piano line, Murphy’s tonsils burning with Ian Curtis like control; “That’s how it starts. We go back to your house. You check the charts and start to figure it out”.

‘Us And Them’ and ‘Watch The Tapes’ are two party starters more in the mould of ‘Daft Punk Is Playing At My House’. Seething, twisted mirror ball smashers that so effortlessly combine rock and dance you wonder why The Prodigy even bothered. The title track is a spot on example of Murphy’s new found confidence with space. He lets a deep, dubby disco cut unravel to its barest essentials, before bandaging it up in tense bass and a monotone mantra; “Sound of silver talks to me, makes you want to feel like a teenager”. It continues Murphy’s inner wrestle with aging in a young mans game, but he shouldn’t have to worry, ‘Sound Of Silver’ is bursting with a passion and ingenuity that shame almost every other young act out there. There is not one slack moment on this album and it’s perfectly paced and placed. 9 brilliant tracks in little over 50 exhilarating minutes. As the last beautiful piano notes tinkle into the twilight of closer ‘New York I Love You But Your Bringing Me Down’, you realise you have been privileged to something truly unique; a dance album with a big beautiful heart.