Despite being made of buzzing circuitry, the Notwist's celebrated 2002 record Neon Golden was recognizably human. Its beeps were gentle and its slightly opague lyrics were nonetheless warm. The overwhelming evidence from its impending successor,  The Devil, You + Me, suggests that more traditional instrumention makes the band even more mellow. For at least one track though, the mature Germans manage to locate a bit of the darkness they left far behind in their early nineties metal band youth. Which is not to say that "Alphabet" in any way resembles a screaming guitar ode. Its repetitive beats are actually closer to the sullen science of the new Portishead record (apparently the only possible end result when it takes you more than five years to hatch a follow-up disc). Markus Archer's gentle murmur can't manage existential despair--even in such dire surroundings--which is why he mainly gets out of the way. "I won't sing anything," he sings repeatedly. Twisted guitar squeals articulate unease much more effectively.