marks something of a retreat for , moving the virtual group away from the excess of , a multi-part series of collaborations that sometimes threatened to collapse upon its own weight. Guests are still featured on -- collaboration is one of the chief reasons launched the group at the dawn of the millennium -- but he sticks with and as his main collaborators, giving the record an appealingly streamlined feel. Another element lending the album a sleek, unified vibe is how the guests are effectively used as extra texture. may dominate the vibrant "Tormenta," but he's the exception to the rule: gives "Oil" a hint of harmony, and sets "New Gold" adrift in a neo-psychedelic haze, while fades into the background of "Possession Island." All this means is that is at the center of , a shift that underscores how the record is less an exploration of new sonic territory as it is a reaffirmation of his strengths. Balancing bright, colorful electro-pop with a slight air of melancholy is hardly a new trick for , yet there's a clean, efficient energy propelling that gives the album a fresh pulse. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine