The Twilight Sad have always been known for their dark, atmospheric sound, filled with fuzzing guitar effects and layered with James Graham’s powerfully sinister vocals. So, understandly, it came as quite a surprise when the band announced a new, more electronic direction, a direction that would see them explore kraut rock and a variety of synth effects.

Straight away, opener ‘Alphabet’ introduces this new sound, with prominent synths in front as guitars and bass carry the song  in the distance. ‘Dead City’ has a very Kraut rock and industrial feel, coupled with singer James Graham’s dark, sleek vocals, contrasting with the static sounds. ‘Sick’, the first single from the album, does lend a bit more to their previous material but with the striking synths, still continues this newfound electronic direction.

This continues through ‘Don’t Move’ and ‘Nil’ whilst ‘Don’t Look At Me’ and ‘Another Bed’ offer a more Numan-esque upbeat vibe, reminiscent of The Editors ‘In This Light And On This Evening’ and Dépêche Mode’s ‘Violator’. Closer ‘Kill It In The Morning’ was one of the first tracks we heard from the album and it rounds things off nicely, bringing together their new electronic sound with the dark, pulsing, distorted noise of their previous material.