In all truth, many thought Odyssey would prove to be a monumental failure, something akin to Weezer's self-destructive follow up to Pinkerton, or Daft Punk's most recent offering.
As brilliant as Fischerspooner was at using multiple art forms as vehicles for social commentary, many still questioned their musical depth. Casey Spooner made no attempts to hide the band's inherent artifice.
It was mere pop, or anti-pop, served up as a mock-celebration of Britney Spears' sexual theatrics. Much was made by Fischer and Spooner themselves of the fact that #1 was a purely digital creation, realized through user-friendly Apple laptops and a few software synthesizers. Fischer, the musical mind behind the band, was a classically trained musician, yet not one single instrument was used on #1. The cold, clinical feel of #1 was palpable, but appropriate during the short-lived and over-hyped genre \electroclash.""
As the self-proclaimed provocateurs of electroclash, Fischerspooner took the majority of the critical backlash. Fischerspooner, the artists, could not have cared less because the goal was never to sell records. Fischerspooner, the musicians, probably felt it necessary to incorporate more organic instrumentation in order to avoid the ""one hit wonder"" label.
Upon first listen of Odyssey it is apparent that the songwriting quality has improved markedly. The sterile rhythms of #1 remain, but in a more subtle form, accompanied by analog instruments like guitars, bass and recorded drums. Fischerspooner wisely channel the spirit of New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Erasure and Depeche Mode into Odyssey, and it works better than anyone could have anticipated.
The album opener and first single ""Just Let Go"" sets the tone for the album. It is a combination of classic New Order instrumentation and Fischerspooner's characteristic oscillating, on-the-verge of-rupturing synth sounds heard most notably on ""Emerge.""
The third track, ""Never Win,"" is a funk-disco rhythm reminiscent of both Cake and old school Daft Punk, complete with a meandering guitar riff and pulsating bass line. In fact, it is as if a mad scientist took Cake and infused their sound with chillout electronica-very satisfying, to say the least.
On ""We Need A War,"" Spooner breathes life into Susan Sontag's lyrics. Surprisingly, it proves to be one of the more interesting tracks on Odyssey, not least because Spooner delivers the politically-charged lyrics with the robotic acumen of Bernard Sumner in New Order's ""Blue Monday.""
Fischerspooner even successfully experiments with the loungy, space atmospherics of Air on ""Ritz 107"" and ""All We Are."" Both songs employ playful, arpeggiated melodies that swirl effortlessly around soft, ambient synthesizer pads, sparse piano notes and a synthetic string section.
Odyssey ends with a chaotic cover of Boredom's ""Circle,"" which is a powerful end to a solid sophomore effort.
Overall, this is a much more focused album than #1, lyrically and musically, and so it is a much more satisfying listen than their previous work. It is not one of the best albums of the year, but it is a welcome relief to the banal music of the Killers and the Bravery.
