Miike Snow are three electropoppers from Sweden. The cover of their self-titled debut album is steel-grey and minimal and carries an image of an ice block, within which is the silhouetted outline of a rabbit with antlers. In fact, its probably an arctic hare crossed with a reindeer.
Its December in the UK and the snow falls like confetti at some endless and increasingly joyless wedding. Todays weather forecasters unnervingly accurate during the winter months advise cheerily that the daytime temperature will peak at 0C.
Amidst the tales of snow, ice and commuting woe, listening to the 12 tracks of Miike Snows debut record easily invokes the ice hotels of northern Scandinavia and short, clear, warming drinks. The addictive, dancing melodies glisten and twinkle like ice melting in sunlight and the bass-light electric feel of the Miike Snow sound adds to the chill. Theyre even called Snow. Its catchy stuff.
Opener Animal, Burial, Song For No One and A Horse Is Not A Home are a few highlights among many. There is hardly a low-point across this collection of light, chilled synth-pop that suggests a wide range of influences, from Ryksopp to Moby to A-Ha.
Although much of the album lacks the warming thrum of a heavy bass element, it also highlights the attention to detail of established songwriters. The trio may have released just one album to date but there is already much more to them than meets the eye. In various guises, the band members have a built an impressive collective CV.
Not least is the fact that two of three, Pontus Winnberg and Kristian Carlsson (working as Bloodshy & Avant), co-wrote and produced Britney Spears's 2004 hit, Toxic. A better example of post-millennial pop it would be very hard to find. It earned them a Grammy.
As the snow deepens outside, bizarrely, some tracks Black & Blue, Plastic Jungle - lift the listener into the warmth of high summer; a soundtrack to long evenings draped in late, buttery sunlight. Its an intoxicating cocktail.
Miike Snows catchy brand of thought-pop will most likely get filed alongside 2009s myriad electronica offerings. The fact that it is vastly superior to most of those may be sadly overlooked.
Unusually, this collection of songs of depth and substance may well for once - be worth the 7 or so you need to buy it. Be intrigued.