★★★★☆
Kris Menace is a firm believer that euphoria will take care of itself if you let it develop naturally. Time and again across his follow-up to Idiosyncrasies there are moments of elevation and jubilation, bearing all of the riffs a Balearic paradise could ask for in a higher state of “Discopolis.” The key is not to lay it on thick or ostentatiously; such knowledge of how a dance floor works (while not being a source of revolution there are tracks that overlap too much into one another, about the only criticism Menace has to wear), makes you wonder how so many others fail in turning the same essence into an overblown fireball of cheese. The album title couldn’t be more clued up either. Even the format is a winning throwback of thirteen, vocal-less tracks.
With reference points to bygone clubbing via keyboard also not missing the point (the divine “Fly Me to the Moon”), electro-house is measured precisely by the German, who always seems to have extra time to push forward with his bass pads and twinkling synths, with no discernible drop in BPMs. “Trusting Me” shows the tactics aren’t always lightweight either, with “We Are” appearing to want to fade to grey, and crisp and clean electro punches “Timeless” and “eFeel” make movements as mesmeric as following a particular thong clad video of Menace’s. A summer spellbinder to warm you until winter.
File under: Junior Jack, Mainframe, Lifelike