In This Light and On This Evening

After Editors’ stellar U.S. debut in 2006 got overlooked and a self-conscious 2007 follow-up came and went here without much fanfare, the British post-punk band seems to have struck a comfortable balance on its third release. Editors will probably never shake the scorn of those who think the band is merely rehashing influences such as Joy Division and Echo & the Bunnymen, but this time it doesn’t seem to care. In This Light and On This Evening is confident, wit h a sweeping grandiosity. Lyrical themes include questioning the existence of God on “Papillon” and likening British legislators to ravening carnivores on “Eat Red Meat = Blood Drool.” Ringing guitars are swapped for layers of synthesizers that soar on “Bricks and Mortar” and buzz distantly on “Walk the Fleet Road.” It’s all evidence of a step forward by a band that’s still deciding where it wants to go. –Eric R. Danton