The latest piece of electro-dance goodness from James Murphy, the brains behind LCD Soundsystem, is This Is Happening, the last release under the name that has seen him release two other albums,  LCD SoundSystem and the wonderful Sound Of Silver.

Dance Yrself Clean
“Dance Yrself Clean”, the opening track of the album, is a interesting listen.  It begins with the group of band members along with Murphy singing together against a simple drum beat, with bits of synth coming in and out as they progress. Just when you think that the whole track will proceed like this, the current beat is joined by an incredibly funky synth dance piece, accompanied by Murphy’s signature wailing vocals. It’s a good track, but at 8:58, it can certainly drag on.

Drunk Girls
Probably my favorite song off the album so far, “Drunk Girls” has everything you would expect from a great LCD track. Fun lyrics which have a casual message that everyone who’s partied before will understand, plenty of chances to sing along and clap your hands, plus some great, light hearted synth playing along in the background. A simple structure leads throughout the song so it’s good fun to listen to and something that will get plenty of cheers if it starts playing at a party.

One Touch
A nice groove is one way to describe this song. Much like “Drunk Girls”, this is the kind of track you can dance to. The wonderfully layered synth and infectious beat really makes this a good listen, but the lack of anything that is definitively LCD can make this a bit of an easy song to forget.

All I Want
Another wonderful track, “All I Want” combines a nice  repeated progression of piano and drums with an awesome wailing guitar track. One thing I’ve noticed about most LCD songs is their repetition, punctured only by a few parts that actually change things up. This, in most cases, would be a bad thing, but the pure enjoyable nature of many of the songs, Murphy’s voice, and lyrics, can create songs that don’t really require structure in themselves, and this is certainly evident in “All I Want.”

I Can Change
The bassy, chilled out tone in most parts of this track makes it an easy listen, and the addition of the high pitched synth during choruses shakes it up enough to make it an enjoyable listen. Murphy seems to have gone the extra mile on his vocals and lyrics during this track too, as they’re certainly a highlight.

You Wanted A Hit
“You Wanted A Hit” begins feeling like a vortex of synth, darting and flashing about all together. Once drums and guitars come in, the synth fades away to leave a beat with a real feeling of purpose. I don’t know what gives me that feeling, it just feels like it’s on a mission. Once the lyrics kick in and you get a feel as to what Murphy is really trying to say, it becomes more and more apparent that this song is either a message to someone or to a group of people about not always listening to what other people want.

Pow Pow
Probably the strangest track on the album, “Pow Pow” has a complete lack of structure in its lyrics, and bongos abound around the whole song. It’s certainly weird, and I can’t see everyone liking it. But it’s certainly an interesting track to listen to.

Somebody’s Calling Me
Beginning with a slow progression of piano, echoing clapping, and quiet vocals, and ending with basically the exact same thing, “Somebody’s Calling Me” is probably the worst song on the album. It lacks that energy that comes with most LCD tracks, so it cannot support its repetition, and the irritating explosions of synth don’t seem to serve any purpose but too annoy.

Home
Starting out with an undeniably catchy mixture of of low-key synth, some sporadic guitar strings, and some nice high-hat play, “Home”just becomes more and more layered as it progresses, bringing in vocals, horn sounding synth, and some incredibly funky bass. It’s probably one of the best tracks besides “Drunk Girls” and is a great way to finish off the album.

This Is Happening is certainly a good way for Murphy to say goodbye to LCD SoundSystem, but I do feel as though it is a little bit unpolished. There’s no song that will be remembered for a time to come other than Drunk Girls and even that might only be a pop track to be forgotten in a few months. Other than a few issues with irritating or somewhat boring songs, This Is Happening is definitely a good listen and something that fans should enjoy.