Michelle Shiers on September 10th, 2014

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Brighton’s the Kooks have just released their fourth album “Listen” via Astralwerks Records. First track and one of three singles “Around Town” is a perfectly catchy opener and a good indicator of the unexpected album to come. With funky grooves and synth, the Kooks really begin to show off their new change. Leaving their previous jangly indie pastiche, “Listen” struts like a ’70s throwback. Singer Luke Pritchard’s warbling wail is just as recognizable as ever, but the foursome have shifted stylistically thanks in part to hip-hop co-producer Inflo. “It Was London” touches on the subject of city riots with a befitting debt to the Stones. “Bad Habit” is probably the Kookiest single, filled with requisite hooks and crashing tambourines. “Down” starts off with Prichard’s squeaky snarl and morphs into a groove-based number sure to divide Kooks purists with lyrics like “down down diggity down down.” And the aptly named “We Are Electric” sounds like a song for DJs to sling in London dance clubs. Retaining only a dash of the Kooks’ signature sound, closing track “Sweet Emotion” starts with a hip-hop beat and then moves into a funky tangle enhanced with vocal layers and piano. “Listen,” which came out this week, is a complete re-evaluation of the band’s previous Britpop identity – perhaps difficult for longtime fans to accept, but a convincing makeover nonetheless.

||| Stream: “Around Town” and “Bad Habit”

||| Live: The Kooks perform Sept. 25 at The Wiltern.