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Dec 15, 2009 Web Exclusive By Laura Studarus

Four years after their eponymous debut, British quartet Engineers are back with a sophomore effort that methodically shifts their sound from pleasant—albeit sleepy—dream pop, to actively engaging shoegaze. However, while Three Fact Fader’s highpoints often recall a more accessible Lush or Slowdive, Engineers are careful to treat their predecessors as reference points rather than crib notes.

The shift is immediately evident in slow building album opener, “Clean Colored Wine.” Constructed on a bed of squeaky beats and a chorus of driving electronic guitars, the track thrives with on a sense of immediacy—even as Simon Phipps’ recumbent vocals soothe. Likewise telling is album closer, the similarly aggressive track, “What Pushed Us Together.” Again, innovation taken to an extreme—or as extreme as Engineers care to be—vocals buried under Merriweather Post Pavilion-style beats, background harmonies closer to the sunny tunes of The Beach Boys than the gray skies that categorize the majority of their catalog.

Of course, like the methodical nature of their namesakes, each song in between is also meticulously crafted. Cohesive while skirting repetition, individual elements build from song-to-song, giving Three Fact Fader a big-picture musical gestalt that demands repeat start-to-finish listens. The closing strings of “Emergency Room” form the opening strains of “The Fear Has Gone.” The relatively down-tempo “Crawl From The Wreckage” plays like a counterpoint to the titular track’s introspection. Of course, their ability to focus on minutiae without losing sight of the big picture should come as no surprise. Engineers—be they scientific or musical—know that the devil is in the details. (www.myspace.com/engineers0)

Author rating: 7/10