Under Color of Official Right

Protomartyr’s second album tamps down some of the gut-punch wildness of <i>No Passion All Technique</i> for something more refined and atmospheric, but no less beguiling. Anchored by start-stop rhythms that push the songs forward while keeping them on thrillingly shaky ground, <i>Under Color</i> is a mysterious and elusive album that juxtaposes post-punk din (“Pagans”) with moments of strange, soaring grandeur (“Scum, Rise!”, “Come & See”).