LIARS

WIXIW

[Mute]

For what it’s worth, the title of Liars’ latest is pronounced “wish you,” and the band members say the fact that its unique spelling is a palindrome was somehow a source of comfort to them. Never mind—that explanation is about as oblique as the music on this follow-up to 2010’s Sisterworld, 11 songs steeped in synthesizer textures and atmospherics. Liars have previously played with keyboards and electronics, alternating on earlier albums between cranked-up guitars and gauzier arrangements, but WIXIW finds the trio at its most experimental. “The Exact Color of Doubt” drifts by like wisps of cloud, while a stark bassline underpins dark, skittering bursts of electronics punctuating ethereal vocals. The buzzy synths and throbbing beat on “Brats” are club-ready, and low, churning synths lend an air of tribal menace to “A Ring on Every Finger.” It’s vastly different from the post-punk sound the band mined early in its career, but a healthy sign that Liars has plenty of wishes left to make. –ED