V

V, on the other hand, sounds, potentially at least, like a huge mainstream hit. It performs the not inconsiderable feat of sounding commercial without losing any of the Horrors’ essence or individuality.

V isn’t a huge reinvention, more a subtle reboot, and a move which has worked out perfectly. The Horrors are hardly new to making brilliant albums--they did that with their previous three--but V is better than them all.

An album that is nothing short of a triumph, one that perfectly balances their craving to be “unsettling” again with soaring, arena-ready anthems.

V is the record that has finally given The Horrors a set identity. Perfecting every element they did so well on their four previous records, V is a pure and unadulterated celebration of The Horrors.

V could very well be the album that pushes The Horrors to the next echelon, something the group has already accomplished in its native U.K. with its last two albums breaking the top 10 charts. This is an unrealistic expectation Stateside, but V certainly has the chops to propel them up a level or two in the American public's consciousness.

Arguably The Horrors’ best album yet. V, it would seem, is for Victory.

Five albums in and The Horrors have obviously found a new lease of life. This V is for victorious.

It makes for their most cohesive album yet.

Not everything on V works--"Weighed Down" and "Gathering" lack the focus of the album's highlights--but the songs that do are some of the Horrors' most exciting yet.

It’s playful and elaborate.

The band have responded by unleashing their ballsiest selves.

On V, the Horrors have got their mojo back. They sound lean, keen and mean but with songs to match the swagger. This is the album the band needed to make.

Overall, V feels like a consolidation of all of the strengths that The Horrors have built up over the last ten years, tightly bundled and perfectly accessible without sacrificing any of their artistic integrity.

An audacious vault into Depeche Mode and U2 territory. [Oct 2017, p.30]

V feels bigger than its predecessors, but it still disturbs. [Oct 2017, p.105]

It's the "ballads," for want of a better term, that provide V's definitive highlights. [Oct 2017, p.89]

The Horrors’ most ambitious album to date. At the same time, it feels like a wasted arsenal of almost-brilliant songs, a record that lacks the essential quirk found in so many of the band’s touchstones.