When Sleigh Bells first roared into view in 2010, it felt as if they were less a band and more a conundrum: namely, can a group simultaneously be cranium-crushingly loud and chart-botheringly sweet? Four albums later, and with that question conclusively answered, the noisepop duo have decided to branch out a little. Jessica Rabbit is still clearly a Sleigh Bells album – the recognisable thud of Derek Miller’s distorted guitar lines on bruising opening track It’s Just Us Now stands as punishing confirmation of that – but there’s a wider sonic palette on show than on previous efforts: snatches of synth and glitchy breakbeats jostle for attention alongside Alex Krauss’s clean, poppy vocals. Indeed, where once Krauss’s voice felt overwhelmed by the cacophony behind it, here it’s given star billing, gliding over the rap-rock riff of I Can’t Stand You Anymore and providing a punchy counterpoint to I Can Only Stare’s frosty R&B. An encouraging move into new territory.
