It's been five long years since Elastica's first release, a brilliantly consistent album from a group of fun loving Brits. Now they return with The Menace, an album that has it's moments, but fails to capture the energy of their debut.

The Menace isn't exactly a departure for Elastica. It sort of picks up where the last album left off, opening with the zany "Mad Dog," a fun tune, but hardly a hummable one. It's actually the album's slower tunes, along with a couple of instrumentals, that truly work best.

There is no doubt that vocalist Justine Frischmann is a spunky, highly energetic front woman, but many of the songs on The Menace lack the spontaneity and flow of the tracks on Elastica Elastica, and what on Earth compelled them to do a cover of Trio's "Da Da Da?"

With great records from Travis, Richard Ashcroft, Dandy Warhols, and a soon to be released album from Radiohead, Elastica just doesn't measure up. The Menace isn't a bad record, but it certainly wasn't the follow up I'd hoped for.