II

Rather than shy away from the expansive terrain of their previous efforts, Lindstrøm and Prins Thomas send their second studio album straight into the stratosphere, leaving a trail of cosmic-disco dust behind. This one\'s a grower, nearly 75 minutes of journeyman material that seems to stretch on for miles. Not that the LP\'s eight songs are dull; it\'s just that Oslo\'s dynamic duo have left dancefloors behind this time, opting for a cerebral approach that\'s best suited for coffee breaks and Monday morning commutes which entails everything from un-ironic elevator music to heady Krautrock chords to beach-gazing Balearic beats. And since Lindstrøm is a longtime multi-instrumentalist who\'s shared a studio space with Thomas for more than five years, the pair\'s productions retain a jam session feel that couldn\'t be more fluid. You\'re in for a trip, in other words, and while it probably won\'t lead you to an after-hours club, *II* just might inspire several late-night strolls or top-down drives before summer\'s over.