On , attempt to bring their murky electronic pop into the light and a bit more out of the past by working with producer , aka . As , she excels at deceptively bright synth pop with deeper meanings under the surface, so the collaboration seems inspired. She helps the band scrub several layers of dirt and grime off its sound, revealing shiny synth tones that owe more to '80s Casio presets than the muddy analog blobs of ' self-titled debut (their beats still lumber like the drum machine is running on dying batteries, however). The band's mood is also lighter on , especially on the smooth jam which borders on chillwave. features a surprising amount of instrumentals, many of which are decent -- 's lurching melody and kinetic beat are intriguingly ambivalent, but they're not as distinctive as the handful of tracks on which sings. His lovelorn musings on make it one of the album's more successful stabs at bright 'n' shiny synth pop, along with though that song's bleak church bells and graveyard philosophizing confirm that the band is at its best when it's at least a little bit morbid. ~ Heather Phares