Album review: MS MR, Secondhand Rapture (Iamsound/Columbia)

MS MR, Secondhand Rapture (Iamsound/Columbia)

Widely tipped for success, Anglo-American duo MS MR deal in a similar kind of blandly alienated, metrosexual pop to Hurts, with Lizzy Plapinger's sultry-soulful vocals allied to Max Hershenow's electronic pop arrangements.

The formula works best on the singles “Hurricane” – an apprehension of “the darkness in my heart” set to a deep synth pad and two-step shuffle – and “Bones”, whose rolling drums, descending piano motif and desire to “dig up the bones but leave the soul alone” could have been designed to fit a CSI sequence. But the expressions of vague disquiet and regret have a hollow ring.

Download: Hurricane; Bones; Dark Doo Wop