Light & Magic

Ladytron | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 17, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Emperor Norton
• ASIN: B00006IQHJ
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,267 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. True Mathematics

2. Seventeen

3. Flicking Your Switch

4. Fire

5. Turn It On

6. Bluejeans

7. Cracked LCD

8. Black Plastic

9. Evil

10. Startup Chime

11. NuHorizons

12. Cease2xist

13. Re:Agents

14. Light & Magic

15. The Reason Why

Editorial Reviews

Second album from Ladytron, the follow-up to their debut 604, an album that sneaked out of Liverpool and quietly crept up on people everywhere-from London to Los Angeles-to become one of the most critically acclaimed and influential records of recent year

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars They Are The Robots, February 18, 2003

By 

W. Davidson (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light & Magic (Audio CD)

Ladytron will probably have to tolerate being saddled with the "eighties" retro tag for as long as they exist (hopefully they will exist for a very long time) but to see them as just some sort of nostalgia band is to do them a great disservice. Apart from the fact that they write excellent pop songs, they have struck on as sound as unique as, say, Stereolab with their astute use of clever electronics, passionless and unique vocal sound and lyrics that help construct their individual futuristic landscape.

They plunder the electronic heritage with a magpie-like selection of shiny objects, everything from Visage to Moroder and beyond, then add their individual touches and make the contributions of yesterday sound very new, very now and also very tomorrow.

Seventeen is an infectious and great single (and I'm thrilled it is getting consdierable airplay here in Australia, all the less air time for Avril Lavigne - someone please stop her!) but it's only the start. This album sparkles with pop hits, crazy roboticism ("Cracked LCD") and the totally luscious ("The Reason Why") and there's so much more. Listen to with their first album "604" for extended enjoyment. If you love electronica, this will be for you.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars back to the 80s!, October 15, 2002

By 

"bridget_usa" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light & Magic (Audio CD)

This CD takes you right back to the Eighties! It makes me wanna dig out all my old Depeche Mode CDs and put on a leather jacket with buckles and some tight jeans. I didn't know Ladytron before I came across their latest album Light&Magic, but since I got it I'm totally hooked on it.
They remind me of New Order, Depeche Mode or Kraftwerk.

I haven't heard their first album 604 yet, which so many people say is supposed to be so much better. I don't believe that. It can't be better - it might be different. I guess it's a good thing that I didn't know it. This way I didn't listen to Light&Magic with any expectations that could be destroyed.

Light&Magic is one hour of beautiful synth pop that floats through the room with nice beats and airy vocals. I especially recommend listening to Seventeen which has a nice melody and fun lyrics. Other great songs are Blue Jeans, Cease2xcist or The Reason Why. But the best way to listen to this album is to just put it in the player and not touch the skip button. It's electro pop that manages to touch your soul. At least that's what it did to me.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Retro-electro never sounded so current..., September 19, 2002

By 

Christopher Betche (Jeffersonville, Indiana, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light & Magic (Audio CD)

Ladytron consists of five members: two guys, two girls, and a room full of 1980's era drum machines and synthesizers. Electro with spoken word vocals (and occasional melodies) is perhaps the easiest way to describe their style. '604', their first album, despite some instrumental head bangers, was a fairly poppy affair. 'Light & Magic' has taken a harder approach, and that's for the better. More sound effects, harder beats, and distorted melodies add up to a stronger second effort. Don't let the first two mediocre songs fool you. "Flicking Your Switch" pairs a funky retro 4/4 beat with droning vocals and simple background chords. "Turn It On" sounds like Mantronix or even Afrika Bambaataa going crazy on a synthesizer. "Black Plastic" has the feel of the first single (if there is one), with synth strings bouncing off staccato basslines and surprisingly musical vocals. "Startup Noise" is loud, classic, end of the world techno. This album also has a more consistent feel than its predecessor. So if you like video game soundtracks, early dance music, or just the idea of hopping back in time twenty years, 'Light & Magic' is the album for you.