CD: Erasure – Tomorrow's World

The 14th album from Vince Clarke and Andy Bell is supposed to herald a change, or so we are told by their people. Have they gone Goth? Have they discovered dubstep? Like heck. The only thing that has changed appears to be Andy Bell's eerily robotic face. Don't be fooled by the title. There is nothing futuristic about the nine songs here. There isn't even a cameo on backing vocals from Raymond Baxter, the presenter of the BBC series that got to their title first.

But before you start demanding a refund, have a listen. Tomorrow's World is classic handbag electro with knobs on. From the yearning lovesick opener of “Be With You” to the closing sobathon “Just When I Thought it Was Ending”, this is as crisp a collection of high-energy heartache anthems as you'll find this side of Gloria Gaynor and late-period ABBA. Producer and superfan Frankmusik – born in 1985, the same year as Erasure's first hit “Who Needs Love Like That” –  occasionally gets twiddly, but most of the time seems too in awe of his heroes to fiddle with their infectious formula.

There is something oddly arcane about this kind of electronic music though. What was once as dreamy and sci-fi as jetpacks now feels as nostalgic as an Ealing comedy. From the Eurovision disco rattle of “A Whole Lotta Love Run Riot” to the bluesy “You've Got to Save Me Right Now” there is little here that would have sounded out of place when Kid Jensen was hosting Top of the Pops. But if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Vince Clarke's hook-filled melodies quickly suck you in and Bell's chunky vocals give each track so much heart you will never want to leave. Welcome to the world of Erasure. The land where time stood still.

Watch Erasure perform "Take a Chance on Me"