Shit Robot's Marcus Lambkin proved on the project's first album, 2010's
From the Cradle to the Rave, that he was well-versed in a myriad of electronic music styles from four-on-the-floor techno to funky house to electro-pop to synth pop. With the help of some of his DFA friends, he made a really promising, really fun album. The follow-up, 2014's
We Got a Love, cashes in on that promise as it utilizes some old DFA connections, looks a bit farther afield for collaborations, and digs into a few more styles with equally impressive skill. The debut was perfectly good, but this time Lambkin's songs are a little catchier, the synths a little poppier, and the sound is more focused. His DFA pals acquit themselves well, with Nancy Whang lending her always lovely vocals to the dance-punky "Do That Dance,"
the Rapture's Luke Jenner going full
Sylvester to great effect on the percolating disco heater "Feels Real," and
LCD drummer Pat Mahoney's
Museum of Love adding some nice dreaminess to the cotton-soft "Dingbat." Elsewhere, vocalist Holly Backler channels
Ce Ce Peniston on the wonderfully retro hip-house charmer "Feels Like," and the suddenly ubiquitous
Reggie Watts adds some oddball treated vocals to "The Secret" and plays it straight on the title track, an infectious house jammer that sounds great with his falsetto vocals soaring high above the beat. The real get, though, is legendary Chicago house artist
Lidell Townsell, whose "Get wit U" and "Nu Nu" singles are genre classics. He gives the pulsing "Do It (Right)" some old-school cred and Lambkin responds with a track that nearly equals Townsell's own work. Add a couple of techno-y
Moroder-esque instruments to the mix and the result is another excellent album from Lambkin and his unfortunately named band. His impressive mastery of sounds is now matched by the quality of the songs, and overall one would be hard-pressed to find a better, more satisfying electronic dance music album in 2014, or anytime. ~ Tim Sendra