GOLDEN SILVERS - True Romance

If there's something that the Brits do better than anyone else on the planet, it's hyper-literate, well-coifed, sophisticated yet fun pop music. Check the evidence: The Kinks, Elvis Costello and the Attractions, The Jam, Joe Jackson, XTC, Super Furry Animals, The Bees, all the way up to last year's exceptional The Week That Was album. Well, there must be something in the Thames (that's an understatement!) because now here come the Golden Silvers. Some ears have all the luck. I'm just going to go ahead and gush and say this is easily the most satisfying surprise I've heard all year. The entire album is immediately replayable—sure, it's a tad kitschy and retro, but never in a way that distracts from the top-drawer quality of the writing and playing. And besides, I think we're all over the idea that nothing good came out of the '80s, right? I wish I could be more articulate but to be honest, this album makes me as knock-kneed and tongue-tied as a first date. Wait, make that a really great first date.