White Lies, black hearts

Like the point in a dying relationship in which anger turns to apathy, White Lies spin a sort of self-loathing melancholia that feels strangely therapeutic. With their newly released second album, Ritual, the London trio have colonized the rich turf at the intersection of meticulously structured mope-rock and euphoric U2-sized pop, where moments of resignation cozy up alongside epic odes of self-realization.

"I feel that I'm a far less romantic person this time around, and I think the songs are a little more human as a result," songwriter and bassist Charles Cave tells The Prague Post. "Love is an important theme on this album, but perhaps not in a very conventional way."

Until now, convention has been something of a sticking point for White Lies. With their chart-topping, 1 million-selling 2009 debut, To Lose My Life..., the band were accused of following in the footsteps of other black-clad, minor chord playing acts such as Interpol and Joy Division a little too closely. Their gloomy live shows, in which frontman Harry McVeigh would deliver the band's elegiac missives in the same doleful drawl as Ian Curtis, didn't much help matters. With Ritual, however, White Lies sound infinitely more self-assured and at ease with their own ambition.

"We've learned a lot about ourselves over the past couple of years," Cave says. "When it came to making this album, we were just desperate to be more creative, and I think we've achieved that."

Having been produced by legendary Nine Inch Nails and Smashing Pumpkins engineer Alan Moulder, the group's stately guitars, fluid bass lines and mechanistic drumming have been joined by some experimental elements.

White Lies' tales of urban loneliness and bruised withdrawal now resonate with a fervent buzz; the album's pop production contorts from track to track to reveal a string of unexpected electronic touches.

"We've listened to a huge amount of electro music over the last couple of years, and I think that's reflected in the music," Cave says. "We felt inspired to pick and choose our favorite bits and see how we could incorporate similar ideas into the record."

At once celebratory and introspective, Ritual expertly surmises that feeling of youthful joy and trepidation while wearing its stadium-aiming intentions firmly on its sleeves.

Album highlight "Holy Ghost" is arguably the group's most expansive offering to date, shifting from simmering, electronic orchestration into a gritty frenzy of serrated guitars, while the likes of "Peace and Quiet" and "Turn the Bells" find the band exploring more fragile sounds.

"It's been great to be able to add more depth to our music," Cave says. "By introducing electronic elements to the mix, we've been able to do things we didn't even think we were capable of."

Whether White Lies will be able to bring their newfound sonic firepower to the stage remains to be seen, but with successful tours completed with Kings of Leon, Muse and Coldplay last year, the band have surely learned a thing or two about taking their stage show to another level.

"I think people will be impressed with our live show," Cave says. "We've spent a lot of time getting the show to sound as good as it possibly can. I think touring with bands like Muse and seeing how much they bring to their performances has taught us to be very ambitious."

We can only hope that White Lies' debut in Prague lives up to the band's own expectations.

Andrew Fenwick can be reached at
afenwick@praguepost.com