Polyvinyl Records release Of Montreal's new LP, UR Fun, the band's 16th studio album. Following on from their 8th album, Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? (2007), which charted the start of the love affair between Of Montreal's front person Kevin Barnes and Christina Schneider, the brain behind the pop project Locate S,1, UR Fun continues to chart their still-in-love relationship...

For those of us who lived through '80s synth pop age... there are so many references from old bands and familiar songs tucked away in Of Montreal's UR Fun that it almost feels like an old album that we haven't heard in a long time. But even diehard lovers of that bygone era may find this a little on the cheesy side. Tracks like 'You've Had Me Everywhere' are particularly cringe worthy... but only on the first play through. Once you get into the album's stride it soon becomes a loving love letter to the past.

There are political messages on tracks like 'Peace to all Freaks' - a protest song against totalitarianism, familial terrorism and wastefulness... but will listeners really pick up on these messages, or care, when they're wrapped up in '80s fuzz?

While front person Kevin Barnes is open and honest with his lyrics, for the most part you probably won't be able to decipher what he's belting out... but it doesn't really matter. You've come for the show... and the show is an '80s throwback that's worthy of your time... even just the once. It's an odd but, nevertheless rewarding collection of quirky, upbeat songs.

7

Nick Smithson