Like most pop idols who have something between their ears besides fresh air, the Norwegian dreamboats in A-ha hope to be remembered someday for something other than their cheekbones. Their chances, unfortunately, aren't good.

If the stylish electrolocomotion of Scoundrel Days is any indication, A-ha apparently has delusions of Roxy Music art-pop grandeur. Singer Morten Harket has certainly practiced his Bryan Ferry lounge-lizard flourishes with admirable diligence. But as pop art, Scoundrel Days – the viking trio's second album – is pretty shallow stuff. Songwriters Pål Waaktaar and Mags, the instrumental two-thirds of the band, essentially conjure up cool synth atmospheres – the glacial chill of "The Swing of Things," the breezy syncopation of "Cry Wolf" – that otherwise lack melodic depth. Nothing on Scoundrel Days has the pesky immediacy of the cloying falsetto hook in A-ha's '85 breakthrough hit, "Take On Me." "Maybe Maybe" is instead a pale echo of Abba's sugary Spectorian pomp, while the only distinguishing feature of "I've Been Losing You" is its booming Phil Collins drum sound.

The sizable gulf between A-ha's aesthetic ambitions and its minimal achievements is particularly evident in the lyrics, most of which are by Waaktaar. The fact that English is his second language may account for the serpentine logic of his musings and his dizzying non sequiturs. Consider this murky excerpt from the title track: "For want of an option/I run the wind'round/I dream pictures of houses burning/Never knowing nothing else to do/With death comes the morning/Unannounced and new." This is the kind of poetic overreach that would embarrass any band but the Moody Blues.

The commercial future of Scoundrel Days depends, of course, on factors other than objective criticism – such as the adoration of young girls the world over. A-ha's frosty Nordic smiles already decorate bedroom walls from sea to shining sea. As to whether future generations will remember the members of A-ha for anything besides their dental work, it's likely history will have the last laugh. (RS 488)

DAVID FRICKE