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The drugs must have really kicked in on this one as gone is the last shadow of the band they used to be on the previous album and now there is a more electronic vibe taking over. Things grow a shade darker on "Masks of Saturn", though the vocal melodies don't have as much invested in them. With each song it sounds like the album is slipping into a deeper and more distant lethargy with the delicate hesitancy of the title track making a project like Massive Attack seem upbeat in comparison. There is more focus to the song writing of "Jewel After Another" that floats out of the more trip hop feel into something closer to a sedated Cocteau Twins.
The pace picks up rather marginally with a distorted synth that reminds me of the backing track to "the Hills" by the Weeknd. He verses seem very clear cut in their direction. Lyrically it's all rather vague. Most of this is due to where the vocals sit in the mix. This keeps the album from coming across poppy, but also keeps the lyrics in a veil of secrecy. Things become more obscured in a misty murk on "Hades" that closes the album. The vocals become another texture thanks to the opaque production which really only provide clarity to the more tribal beat layered over the song. I'll give this album a 9. I quit doing drugs years ago so I am not sure how much use I would get out of some of the moods created here, but I'll likely give this a shot on my iPod. Fans of forward thinking shoe gaze will like the new direction this duo has taken and it's a good lazy album to nap to by the pool this summer.
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