Super furry heartbreak

The Super Furry Animals, one of Wales' largest musical exports, has a back catalogue of flawless releases. However, in accordance with the laws of gravity, what was up has come down.

Their newest album, "Love Kraft," while not totally lacking, is their weakest release to date.

One characteristic of prior Super Furry Animals' albums is their total mastery of a wide variety of musical genres. On this album, they strive for a more cohesive sound, but this proves to be a limiting endeavor.

"Love Kraft" is the first release to contain vocal contributions from all members of the band, as opposed to the sole role of lead singer Gruff Rhys. Normally, a shift like this is a positive change.

Unfortunately, nearly every song sounds like the next. Every track embodies the same slow-paced, neo-soul aesthetic with lush instrumentals and soft harmonies. Rarely does a track stand out, possibly because of the multiple contributions from all the members.

Making all the tracks sound the same shows clear-cut evidence of a formula. By sticking to a concept, the songs are written around the album's central, but monotonous themes.

"Lazer Beam" is by far the weakest single ever in the Super Furry Animals' history. It lacks melody and features too many levels of distortion and sound effects, which make the lyrics indecipherable. The words are delivered in a rushed fashion, making the release of the album seem premature and underdeveloped.

One song that cannot be faulted is keyboardist Cian Ci?Ae?r?Ae?n's "Walk you Home," a sweeping piece of innocent romance. The song, featuring a violin section along with sweetly pitched vocals about young love, excels at its attempt to express purity.

"Love Kraft" is frustrating for two reasons. The first lies in the fact that it lacks any strong singles that could stand out from its mellow haze.

It also disappoints because the album reveals the band's vulnerability to issuing a sub-par release, showing that everyone is susceptible to age's sapping of creativity. No matter how good a band is, it's a sad fact that gravity will take hold, forcing it to fall into mediocrity.