It takes ten seconds to realise that Swedish siblings, Olof and Karin Dreijer, of The Knife are musical geniuses. Deep Cuts starts with three of the best tracks on the album and arguably three of the best electro tracks ever written. The intricate beats, the retro claps, the sexy vocals and the outlandish lyrics represent what The Knife are all about.

The album has the Swedish/Euro Pop influence and yet encapsulates a fresh and exciting sound. The steel drums in ‘Pass This On‘ at first shocked me, this combined with the eerie child choir like taunts – I thought what the hell is this? Is this just about the best thing I’ve ever heard?! Though the album is anything but coherent, the tracks are incredibly unpredictable. Some tracks are too bizarre to listen to with any kind of pleasure, yet I feel somewhat compelled to listen anyway. That said, you can sense the duo’s desire to challenge the listener with their new wave of avant-garde electro-pop and I respect them for this.

For anyone who is not familiar with electronica, The Knife are a brilliant showcase for the inventiveness of the genre; from cheesy-pop to euro house in ‘Girls Night Out‘ to the type of music suitable for a movie soundtrack in ‘Behind The Bushes‘. Highlights also include ‘Heartbeats‘, ‘You Take My Breath Away‘ with the hidden gems ‘This is Now‘ and ‘The Bridge‘ getting better with every listen.

Words Stevie McMinn