The Lovemakers - Times of Romance

The Lovemakers, a new synth-pop group that is catchy and kitschy all at once, are enjoyable. Times of Romance, however, is a guilty pleasure that often eschews emotional intensity for entertainment. It dangles between the giddy senselessness of Freezepop and the sober mellifluousness of The Postal Service. Rather than resolve a style, the synthesized arrangements and Jason Proctor’s keyboards simply shift tone. Lisa Light has enough vocal range to banter between a striptease of the soul and the reservation of an art house darling; the final member, Scott Blonde, doesn’t. The whole thing’s mixed: “Runaway” and the titular “Times of Romance” deliver a heartier sound while “Shake That Ass” and “Prepare for the Fight” (which unsurprisingly works better as techno) rely on the vibrancy of the beats to fake it (and yes, shake it). That shows youthful variety and exuberance, a lot of promise, too. It’s only when the individual songs cross genres that things break down. (“Falling Apart” has sober lyrics and an up-tempo beat.) Stuck in the middle, between silly and serious (or a more appropriate combination of the two), the hypnotic charm of The Lovemakers will eventually wear off (or fail completely, as with “We Should Be Taking Our Clothes Off”). Ultimately, Times of Romance is a smooth seduction of sound, but still just a one-night stand. [www.thelovemakers.com]