Satanic Panic In the Attic

Of Montreal’s previous recordings encompassed a wide range of expression: carnival weirdness, ‘60s rock, theatrical pop, psychedelic dreamscapes ...  musical compositions both silly and sublime dotted their landscape. It wasn’t until their sixth full-length release, Satanic Panic In the Attic, that critics were willing to lavish praise across the board. Kevin Barnes has a firm grasp of all things pop, and though only a handful of tracks here have hooky choruses that allow the songs to really stand apart, one gets the feeling the songs are hook-laden, and that’s a feat in itself. Barnes is a master of melody, and he’s smoothed out any past imperfections creating songs that feel polished and sure-footed. An ethereal, airy quality in Barnes’ vocals lifts tracks like “Dis-connect The Dots” and “Lysergic Bliss” into the clouds, while other songs playfully bounce from style to style:  “Will You Come And Fetch Me” moves from tic-toc percussion and twinkling xylophone to swaying violins and on to breezy guitars in under two minutes; “Chrissie Kiss The Corpse” blends faintly Caribbean guitar rhythms with a jaunty pop rock arrangement. Satanic Panic is a real panoply of pop-art color.