Fujiya & Miyagi, Lightbulbs

Thanks to a fragmented release schedule and Hot Chip's nimble scooping of the "exciting British electronica" plaudits, Fujiya & Miyagi's Transparent Things probably didn't reach as many people as it should have in 2006. Illumination may bring greater exposure: Lightbulbs offers a whole new set of electro-funk-via-Neu! rhythms and stage-whispered vocals.

David Best has a tremendous time with the latter, relishing each syllable as he shapes words to meet stressed beats or elongates them beyond their expected cadence. Though his delivery often mirrors the bass melody in order to hammer home a hook (as on the chorus of "Sore Thumb"), it has enough divergent phrases and twists to sidestep predictability. The effect is akin to steady progression down a motorway with a number of artful swerves between lanes. Syncopated, yet hypnotic.

The band's affinity for smart references and sly wit also remains undimmed. Structuring a track named "Uh" around throaty, undersexed groaning might come across as lyrical laziness, were the song not an elaborate portrayal of obsessive categorization ("I arrange my records / al-pha-bet-i-ca-lly."). Indeed, little on the album is entirely straightforward. The fantastic "Knickerbocker" steamrolls along with inconsequential lyrics about ice cream, until piercing mentions of anorexia victim Lena Zavaroni penetrate the subconscious. Plainly, this dessert is not so sweet.

With the exceptions of a sombre title track and the crawling "Goosebumps," Lightbulbs sticks to the pulsing Transparent Things formula — but it's the continuation of a successful theme rather than a rut. Whether their open invitation to delve for hidden lyrical meaning is genuine, or simply offers a sinkhole for intellectual musing, Fujiya & Miyagi are still something of a riddle. While that intrigue holds strong, their modern take on Krautpop remains inviting.