MISOPHONIA

As someone who remembers the classic era albums as new releases, I firmly believe some of today's 'retro' bands rival their Old Masters in quality and, paradoxically, originality. And this new Krautrock release from the 21st century's leading practitioners of the sub-genre is a prime example. I haven't heard a better Krautrock album since the mid-1970's. It doesn't sound like any other Krautrock exemplar, but this is definitely, definitely Krautrock.

Nothing has impressed me more about Prog Archives than the 'hit' status accorded to Electric Orange's excellent 2014 release 'Volume 10'. This is testament to the open-minded cultural vision of fans on this site. The only thing that has held me back from reviewing 'Volume 10' is the fact that my own rating would drag down its consensus score (slightly). Well, with 'Misophonia', Electric Orange have taken an artistic quantum leap - and it has the 'Wow!' factor I look for in awarding 5 stars. Their best album since the brilliant 'Morbus' of 2007 - and musically the two albums hardly sound like the same band. As others have said, Electric Orange never stop progressing.

Krautrock is not everyone's cup of tea, and I would not pretend there is any special musical cleverness required to appreciate this off-the-wall sub-genre. Really it is more a question of one's psychological state. But if you enjoyed 'Volume 10', you should love 'Misophonia'. And these albums are all on Bandcamp to hear - there is no excuse to avoid checking them out.

Verdict: A 21st century Krautrock masterpiece.