Autonomous by Outputmessage

With Autonomous , Outputmessage's first album since 2006's Nebulae, Outputmessage (Bernard Farley) shifts his sound from the IDM / downbeat vibe of Nebulae to more of an electro-pop sound. Farley has been teasing his fans gradually since he released the album's first single, "Undone", over six months ago. Since then, he's released four more singles: a reworking of City Rain's "This I Will Remember" called "I Remember", reworkings of two of his old tracks "Resurface (Vocal)" and "Glintz (Vocal)"and the incredibly catchy "N.Y.R." Releasing five singles from an album before the album releases is definitely unusual, but the seven remaining tracks are certainly exciting enough to forget about the singles. "Get Away", the second track off the album, is likely Outputmessage's best song since the original "Glintz", released on Nebulae. "Prelude" is an exhilarating opener, setting the stage for quite an exhilarating album. The main criticism that can be given is that there are a few throw-away tracks ("Follow", "Tuesday", "Undone"), and that the album isn't quite as cohesive as Nebuale. But the tracks, overall, are better than those on Nebulae, and as such, is a much better album.

9 / 10

Tracklist

1) Prelude

2) Get Away

3) N.Y.R

4) Resurface (Vocal)

5) I Remember (feat. City Rain)

6) Follow

7) Tuesday

8) Glintz (Vocal)

9) Undone

10) Foreign

11) My Love

12) Syracuse

Bold = Album Pick

Songs I'm listening to...

Millionyoung - Cynthia

College - A Real Hero

Climber - Get Away

Beach House - Norway

A Chorus of Storytellers by The Album Leaf

I think what makes A Chorus of Storytellers somewhat disappointing is that it is too formulaic. While The Album Leaf's formula is good, it is not exciting enough for him to really pull off doing the same album over and over. Having said that, while it doesn't match the tranquil brilliance of In a Safe Place, it is actually a solid record. "Falling From The Sun" and "Until The Last" are up there with "Streamside", "Thule", "In Between Lines" and "The Outer Banks" as the greatest tracks The Album Leaf have made. So while it is easy to criticize, A Chorus of Storytellers has some very good moments. It just doesn't bring enough new stuff to the table.

7 / 10

Tracklist

1) Perro

2) Blank Pages

3) There Is a Wind

4) Within Dreams

5) Falling From The Sun

6) Stand Still

7) Summer Fog

8) Until The Last

9) We Are

10) Almost There

11) Tied Knots

BOLD= Album Pick

There Is Love In You by Four Tet

Five years after releasing Everything Ecstatic, Four Tet burst back onto the scene with There Is Love In You, his most beautiful album to date. I personally tend to gravitate more to the ambient beauty of this record rather than the experimental edge to his most acclaimed record, Rounds. The songs "Angel Echoes" and "She Just Likes To Fight" are prime examples of the beauty found within the record. In the former, a female voice disjointedly sings "Love...In You...There's Love...In You" which creates a strange, yet beautiful melody. The ladder is built around a gorgeous guitar riff. Kieran Hedben has proven himself to be one of the greatest electronic music producers of the last ten years, and he's showing no signs of slowing.

8/10

Tracklist

1) Angel Echoes

2) Love Cry

3) Circling

4) Pablo's Heart

5) Sing

6) This Unflods

7) Reversing

8) Plastic People

9) She Just Likes To Fight

BOLD = Album Pick