Pet Shop Boys believe modern pop music is "very narcissistic and introverted".
The ‘West End Girls’ duo – who formed nearly 40 years ago – admire some current chart stars but they feel a lot of artists aren’t recording songs that feel "euphoric" enough.
Neil Tennant – who is joined in the band by Chris Lowe – said: "Something we don’t like about modern pop is that a lot of it is very narcissistic and introverted — not all of it, as I do like Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, Post Malone and The Weeknd — but when we write we are always looking for something euphoric."
One current artist the pair do admire is Years & Years frontman Olly Alexander, who appears on ‘Dreamland’, a track from their new album ‘Hotspot’.
Neil told The Sun newspaper: "Olly had just been to Dreamland when we met for a coffee.
"I had never heard of it but I said it was a great title for a song.
"Chris had already written a basic track so we sang Dreamland over it and we all thought it was super.
"Olly is great to work with. He’s got a beautiful voice and a very different melodic sensibility to us."
The ‘It’s A Sin’ hitmakers still get excited about going into the recording studio and credit playing the festival circuit for invigorating their careers when they hit a patch of "boredom" 15 years ago.
Asked how they have stayed together for so long, Neil said: "People naturally are going to have a sense of boredom or cynicism about what you do.
" We hit that about 15 or 20 years ago, then we started with festivals. We also have a very strong friendship and are loyal.
"When we go into the studio, creating something new is exciting. I know that sounds boring but it’s what it’s about at the end of the day."
But the duo worry about the quality of their output as time progresses, though they don’t feel that has declined for them.
Neil said: "You worry, with a long career, that it’s going to be diminishing times. I don’t think it is with us.
"What we were really excited about with this album is the quality of the songs and the euphoria. Saying ‘it’s melodic’ sounds naff, doesn’t it? But it is very melodic and euphoric. It’s not just all bangers."
Pet Shop Boys bemoan ‘narcissistic’ pop acts
