The Juan Maclean - Less Than Human

Genre electronica Publisher DFA/Astralwerks External Links Official Website DFA Records

WARNING: You may not have ingested enough cocaine to experience the Juan Maclean's Less Than Human in the manner to which it is accustomed. However, DFA honchos James Murphy and Tim Goldsworthy have prepared for this contingency by imbuing this album with so much 1981-flavored paranoia you won't even notice, 'cause you'll be too busy getting down to it whilst worrying about the rising cost of Manhattan real estate.

Reborn as the Juan Maclean, Six Finger Satellite's John Maclean reappears on the scene with this Danceteria-flashback-inducing album. For Maclean, it's actually a logical progression; he spent his tenure with SFS trying to bring funk back to indie rock. Unfortunately, heroin addiction kept him out of the music world for a while, but Maclean finally heeded the pleas of his former soundman-one James Murphy - and started making music again.

Cleaned up and affecting a sexy hipster robot persona, Maclean is in his element on Less Than Human. The album avoids irony in its quest to recreate early-eighties dance, which works well. The 1981-flavored fell-off-the-Ze-Records-truck funk squelch that permeates this record is full of pure joy and awesome beats that work 65 percent of the time, which is a high batting average for beats. The subtle percolation of "AD 2003" gives way to the robot love triangle of "My Shining Skinned Friend," and then it's on. "Give Me Every Little Thing" kills with its mighty bassline and brilliantly simple chorus.

Downtempo numbers fill out the album and are, for the most part, forgettable. On the strength of the album's first four tracks, however, Less Than Human is eminently recommendable. John Maclean can rest easy. The world of indie is finally ready for him.