The triumphant return of Ratatat! Magnifique marks the Brooklyn duo's fifth studio album, breaking the five year silence since 2010's LP4. By this point in their career, Evan Peter Mast & Michael Paul Stroud have got the Ratatat sound down pat. They pretty much formed their signature style on 2006's Classics, and here almost a decade later it still holds it down. I guess when something works so well, there's no need to deviate from the formula - and in this case, it's been working and works really well. Longtime fans will appreciate the familiar combination of epic guitar riffs over tough beats and glitched out effects on "Cream On Chrome," "Contauch," "Primetime," and "Cold fingers," but their are also hints of new experimentation on tracks like the hazy "Supreme" and "I Will Return," plus the pumped up "Nightclub Amnesia." 14 tracks in gatefold sleeve with download included. 

• digital download included
• music label: XL Recordings 2015

reviewed by Timing Belt 07/2015