Australian singer-songwriter Gotye is a throwback who makes the kind of sophisticated pop music that was taken for granted in the 1980s. On his new album, Making Mirrors, he evokes the adult pop of Sting and Peter Gabriel, while still managing to sound fresh. From the first moments of the title track opener, which finds Gotye’s voice floating uneasily between the wax and wane of a synthesizer moan, you know you’re listening to a different type of pop record. That quiet, spare sound gives way to a blast of fuzzy guitars on ‘Easy Way Out,’ an energetic kiss-off that demonstrates Gotye’s considerable range.

Yet neither song prepares you for the genius of ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’, four minutes of perfection as now proven by its near global domination of the pop charts. ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’ is a breakup anthem more concerned with the aftermath of the breakup than where the relationship went wrong. It builds off of a bassline sample from the late, Brazilian composer Luiz Bonfá’s ‘Seville’ with a syncopated, darkly-mischievous xylophone solo. Gotye comes in, singing in a quiet, determined voice, and sets the picture: “Now and then I think of when we were together/Like when you said you felt so happy you could die”. A spooky off-kilter guitar that sounds a little like a theremin echoes the melody as Gotye goes on before ending with “You said that we would still be friends/I’ll admit that I was glad that it was over”. The chorus comes swooping in; Gotye’s voice is bright, hard and cold as he sings,“Now you’re just somebody that I used to know”. It’s a truly anthemic, cathartic moment. If that were all, it would be enough to make ‘Somebody I Used to Know’ a great song, but the guest performance from New Zealander Kimbra makes it the best jilted-lover duet since The Human League’s ‘Don’t You Want Me.’ Kimbra comes in quietly, almost shyly, and lets her voice build in volume in intensity along with her recriminations. Her verse kicks the song to another level of intensity and Gotye, his voice now multi-tracked, takes us out on the chorus.

Almost by virtue of ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’ alone, Making Mirrorsis undoubtedly a front-loaded album, but it stays fresh throughout by being remarkably stylistically diverse. ‘Eyes Wide Open’ gets a new wave vibe from its galloping, double-time bassline and a New Romantic vibe from Gotye’s crooning. On the dubby ‘State of the Art’ Gotye uses auto-tune to pitch his voice down to interesting effect. ‘In Your Light’ is a shimmering piece of uplifting pop that would sound comfortable on a Bruce Hornsby album. At times, like on the bright, brassy, Stevie Wonder-aping ‘I Feel Better,’ the stylistic detours feel distracting, but overall it’s an album that succeeds because it never repeats itself.

Gotye is making the kind of highly tuneful, mature, rock-based pop music that just doesn’t exist anymore. Even if there’s nothing groundbreaking on Making Mirrors outside of ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’, the album’s well-crafted songs and diversity of sound demonstrate his uncommon ambition and craftsmanship. And ‘Somebody’ is more than an instant classic; it’s also a reminder of the kind of fresh melodic songwriting that we’ve been missing for the past fifteen years.

Listen to Making Mirrors