Scissor Sisters Ta-Dah Review

When Scissor Sisters emerged like a gaudy peacock from the debris of the New York electroclash scene, it appeared that their performance art credentials and flamboyant queerness would secure them a small cult following. Yet their debut was so deft, joyous and fiendishly catchy that it sold two and a half million copies in the UK and became beloved of hipsters and grandmas alike.

The pressure to follow up such success must have been immense, and unfortunately much of Ta-Dah shows the strain, falling back on retro kitsch instead of forging ahead into new sonic territory. First single "Don't Feel Like Dancing" may be their poppiest and most infectious confection yet, but its Bee Gee's falsettos and laser gun sound effects sound suspiciously like a band trying too hard. Though its sheer glitter factor makes it preferable to throwaway fare like the sludgy disco of "Lights" or the self-parodic "Ooh".

Their pop instincts are still sharp enough to deliver gems like the strutting boogie of "She's My Man" or the flamboyant, rocky "Kiss You Off". But the more melancholic moments seem to work best, notably the minor chord loveliness of "The Other Side" and the lovesick lullaby "Might Tell You Tonight." After their first album we expected something extraordinary. Unfortunately Ta-Dah, for all its minor joys, doesn't deliver. The pressure is only going to grow on that third album.