Ladytron willed themselves into existence some 25 years ago, writing their names in the residue of icy-hot heroes like Kraftwerk, Soft Cell, and Gina X. They were funny, and they were a little mean, often at the same time, and mean folks often thought they were a joke. With their analog synths and goth affect, they could have disappeared into the mists of novelty nostalgia. Instead, they insisted on brewing up ever-wilder stuff, seizing on the body-blow impact of industrial and shoegaze, the apocalyptic futurism of Detroit techno, the decadence of Italo disco—in a body of work far stronger and stranger than anyone expected. A quarter century in, Ladytron is a band who has Gary Numan , who Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant wants to emulate, who made the best songs on a not-bad Christina Aguilera record, and whose echoes can be heard in recent albums from HAAi, Zara Larsson, and even Addison Rae, who is reportedly knocking at their door for a collab. In the 21st century, Ladytron are generational.