You could pretty much guess what this album would sound like from the narrative of its making of: an Arcade Fire album produced by James Murphy with a lead single that David Bowie threatened to steal if they didn’t release it in a timely manner.

Jumbotron sized indie anthems? Check. Neo disco rhythms infused with punk snarl and wit? You bet. Bowie-in-Berlin affect and soundscapes? You better believe it. But none of that really catches just how great the album actually is. Win Butler is full of his trademark doomsday speak (If you’re looking for Hell, just try looking inside), and the band, as always, traffics in soundtrack-ready indie rock anthems, but on Reflektor, both the punk and the funk are dialed up to eleven (see the detuned guitar wail in the coda of Normal Person, the swinging synth bass line of Joan of Arc, and the grooving Porno). Reflektor also traffics in more atmosphere than Arcade Fire ever has before, with reverb tailing off of every guitar note, echos trailing off the vocals, and understated tracks like Flashbulb Eyes and Welcome the Night II flowing softly between seven minute rockers, which themselves have the same sort of atmospheric anthemic quality as Bowie’s “Heroes.”

Much of the old Arcade Fire is absent here–there are no pump organs, hurdie-gurdies, or banjos anywhere. It’s all electric guitar and synthesizers. But somehow, Reflektor sounds like a return to form after the slight detour that was The Suburbs. They’re more evocative with a lighter touch, and the dance beats Murphy brings to the table only remind us why we loved the Arcade Fire in the first place.