Goldfrapp | The Singles

It's surprising to note that after 10 years spent in Goldfrapp's shadow, Ladytron (arguably the edgier of the two electropop bands), were the first to release a decade-spanning retrospective. Sure enough, the West Country 2-piece are for once following the lead of their Liverpool-based counterparts, with hits package The Singles, a singles collection that curiously doesn't feature all of their singles. Behold! The official tracklist:

01 | Ooh La La

02 | Number 1

03 | Strict Machine

04 | Lovely Head

05 | Utopia (Genetically Enriched)

06 | A&E

07 | Happiness (Single Version)

08 | Train

09 | Ride A White Horse (Single Version)

10 | Rocket

11 | Believer

12 | Black Cherry

13 | Yellow Halo

14 | Melancholy Sky

Note the peculiar layout - the album immediately cashes in its chips with the openers being the band's  two  biggest hits (#4 and #9 UK respectively), whilst everything else seemingly trails in its wake. For a band that has taken in such a diverse array of sounds - from the Björk-esque tones of Felt Mountain through to the ABBA-like kitsch of Head First - this set just doesn't give their music justice. 

Throwing in dreamier moments such as A&E and the remix version of Utopia in amongst the stomp and circumstance of Strict Machine and Ride A White Horse makes for a jarring, nonsensical mix. A chronological order or at the very least a trip through each mood in turn would have definitely hit the spot. Besides, the cover is a blatant rehash of the Supernature artwork:

And where, oh WHERE are Caravan Girl, Twist and Fly Me Away? Sure, they're not the duo's most memorable cuts, but they were all top 75 hits. With just 14 tracks on offer, there was plenty of room for those and even massive flops like Alive and Pilots. Instead we get the dreary new track Yellow Halo...

...and the marginally less dreary Melancholy Sky.

The collection, out on 6th Feb, marks the end of vocalist Alison Eponymous and instrumentalist Will Gregory's deal with Mute, and with this in mind The Singles feels like less of a golden era reminiscence and more like an assortment of hits thrown together to honour a contract. Boos all round!