Pet Shop Boys: 'Disco Four'

Pet Shop Boys have been a band for longer than Klaxons have been alive. They’ve weathered dance music fads like a disco-pop schooner and, after 26 years, they’re still getting the big-gun remix gigs. ‘Disco Four’ celebrates their sticking power, featuring the only knob-twiddling portfolio that counts David Bowie, Yoko Ono and kraut-metal cock-wavers Rammstein as its draws. But their ubiquitous synth-drenched sound can’t pull this motley crew together, and what’s left is a nauseating concoction of the good (Madonna’s ‘Sorry’ gets a thudding rave injection, and Bowie’s ‘Hello Spaceboy’ sounds like a meeting of minds), the bad (have we mentioned Rammstein?) and the pointless (a Maxi Mix of their own ‘I’m With Stupid’?). Licensing dramas mean ‘Disco Four’ will be CD/vinyl only, which is a shame, because it’s a ripe candidate for digital pruning.

Rebecca Nicholson