Side One Records
It’s tempting to speculate that Underworld’s recent soundtrack work — for Anthony Minghella’s Breaking and Entering and Danny Boyle’s Sunshine — has had an influence on their music-making outside the movie theatre. There’s a hint of cinematic sweep to several of the tracks on their first new full-length album in five years like the Enya-esque “To Heal” and the atmospheric and completely misnamed “Cuddle Bunny vs. The Celtic Villages.” In fact “Beautiful Burnout” wouldn’t sound out of place in the more reflective moments on the Brad Fiedel soundtrack to Terminator 2 .
There’s also an increase in the number of what can only be called choruses; the hallmark of singalong pop music is evident in “Crocodile” “Ring Road” (which sounds like something The Streets might have put out) and “Boy Boy Boy.” Despite the new touches longtime fans will be happy to know that Oblivion with Bells still has recognizable Underworld characteristics such as Karl Hyde’s hypnotic stream-of-consciousness vocalizing on “Holding the Moth” and “Faxed Invitation.” The resulting mixture of new and old isn’t revolutionary but it justifies a spin around the dance floor.
