Ra Ra Riot — The Rhumb Line

Originally scheduled for release on the now-defunct V2 label, The Rhumb Line has been anticipated since their self-titled EP came out last year. It would be easy to toss Ra Ra Riot into the growing chamber pop category with The Decemberists and Long Knives, since they have a violist and cellist, but they're more in line with Vampire Weekend, especially on the album's first half. It's most prominent on "St. Peter's Day Festival," which mimics VW's style of lyrical reference name-dropping. The majority of The Rhumb Line is bouncy, dance-driven pop songs layered with enchanting string accompaniments. Four of the six songs from the Ra Ra Riot EP, including "Dying Is Fine" and "Can You Tell," reappear and dominate the first half of the album. But it's the second half and its newer material with the strong dash of '80s synth pop truly shines, though. "Too Too Too Fast" has a familiar New Order-style synthesizer melody and the album ends strongly with the trio of "Oh, La," a cover of Kate Bush's "Suspended In Gaffa" and "Run My Mouth," each of which solidify Ra Ra Riot's growing musical oeuvre.

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