Discodeine At Juno Download

Review: "Synchronize", Discodeine's recent single with Paris-based former Pulp front man Jarvis Cocker, was a thing of rare beauty - a kind of contemporary indie-disco anthem built upon a love of classic house and razor-sharp strings. It marked the duo out as producers with a retro-futurist style and a keen ear for pop hooks. This eponymous debut album, then, could be described as "eagerly anticipated", if only purely for the curiosity its announcement provoked. The good news is that it's a good set, featuring a number of musical curveballs and a distinct style of its own. There's little quite as instantly upbeat as "Synchronize" but there's plenty to get excited about. The first half of the album is noticeably downtempo - a pleasing mixture of leftfield instrumentals and whispered dark-pop workouts. As the album unfolds, Discodeine begin to show their dancefloor credentials more, giving their own twist to analogue house (the Kelley Polar-ish "Ring Mutilation"), warehouse piano anthems ("Grace") and E'd-up midtempo nu disco ("Invert"). As the album rumbles towards a conclusion, there's time for one more dose of glorious experimentation - an epic ambient weird-out entitled "Figures In A Soundscape". It's a fitting end to a surprising and adventurous debut.