Solid tunes fill 'Fundamental'

PET SHOP BOYS; "Fundamental" (Rhino) ***

It would have been so easy for the Pet Shop Boys — vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe — to revamp their style and go acoustic like their contemporaries in Erasure.

But Lowe and Tennant didn't. And that's a good thing. The acoustic thing worked well for Erasure, but the Pet Shop Boys probably didn't want to become copycats.

That's why "Fundamental" is a great Pet Shop Boys album. The keyboard-laden new-wave style is there. Tennant's soft, nasal vocals are intact, but the album is not a rehash of, say, "Suburbia."

"Fundamental" expands on the Pet Shop Boys prior works and brings the sound into the present.

Smooth, dance-easy moody drifters such as "The Sodom and Gomorrah Show," "Minimal" and "I'm With Stupid" are solid Pet Shop Boys tunes. What's more, for those of you who are fans of the Nintendo game "Animal Crossing," you may find that "Minimal" sounds a bit like traveling musician K.K. Slider.

Still, dance music isn't the only draw of this album. There are retrospective slow tunes, such as "I Made My Excuses and Left" and "Luna Park," which are soothing and dreamy — pure vintage Pet Shop Boys.

The album, produced by former Yes member/composer Trevor Horn, captures Tennant and Lowe as fans remember but also gives them a push into the future.

If you go

What: Pet Shop Boys

Where: E Center, 3200 S. Decker Lake Drive

When: Tonight, 7:30 p.m.

How much: $10.19-$45

Phone: 467-8499 or 800-888-8499

Web: www.smithstix.com

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E-mail: scott@desnews.com