Blank Disco - From Zero

Combining elements of techno and ambient, Blank Disco is the bran-child of electronica artist Dan Seville. From early beginnings in 2009, album From Zero is the culmination of two years of work and feels as much a piece of art as a record.

From the cold, mechanical beats and slow electro pulse of opener NYC, a wondrous futuristic sci-fi world is conjured up. Gradually accelerating like an engine, the track picks up speed, almost as if the inner workings of a computer have suddenly been made audible - this is music distinctly for the information age. Heavily distorted vocal samples enter the mix, creating the sound of a busy station of city intersection. The listener becomes one being, lost and alone in a vast crowd; the throbbing heartbeat of a city like NYC itself recreated perfectly. All the while, synthesizers writhe and whip like snakes; lashing out and snipping away, harsh and unforgiving.

From this point on however, the album takes on a far more laid back approach. Midsummer sees the beats fade away to a gentle sizzle, frying in the intensity of the mid-day sun. Rhythmic and hypnotic, as with the entirety of the album, every element of the song is clinical to the extreme. Even Numbers moves on to portray a different landscape - it feels watery, swamp-like; everything floating on a bed of bubbling electronics. It's a sound that continues into Where Are They Now? where it takes on a far darker, more melancholy tone. It's a moment to stop and contemplate, to speculate on the missing 'they' of the song's title.

With no vocals on the album, your attention is focused completely and utterly on the crystalline complexity of the tracks themselves and as the pace picks up again on No Good Reason and Falling Water, we see the album come full circle. There are so many levels you can take this album on - viewed from afar, with its icy blue modernist cover art, it feels minimalistic and hyper-artistic. But zooming in, the details work themselves out, coming to life in the most beautiful of ways.

From Zero is released on the 13th June.

Nicola Roberts inspired by Robyn and M.I.A.

Metronomy's Joe Mount has revealed a little more about Nicola Roberts' solo album - "We did two tracks together, one of them is a bit more electronic-sounding" he told The Sun. "She was really into Robyn and M.I.A. I was surprised but it's a good place for her to start."

Can we expect some tracks like Paper Planes and With Every Heartbeat on Nicola's solo album then? We'll just have to wait and see...

Alison Mosshart & Carla Azar - Tomorrow Never Knows

I already shared my immense appreciation of the Sucker Punch soundtrack in my review of the film on Thursday, but I had to give special mention again to the hypnotic and utterly bewitching cover of The Beatles Tomorrow Never Knows from the CD as it's well on its way to becoming one of my favourite tracks of the year so far.

It's one of those tracks that just builds and builds, wave upon wave of epic beauty colliding and crashing in an explosion of pure beauty. Part of this stems from the filmic power of the song - at seven and a half minutes, it's the most lengthy track from the album - but like the best 'long' tracks, it feels far shorter. If a track like this can trick you into thinking that, it means its working. You're sucked into the world of the song, pulled under into a magical sea of psychadelic melody and colour.

On one hand you have the riotous big-beat and rock influences that form the core of the track, and then comes the gentle, enchanting piano of the mid-point breakdown; setting everything up for the final, breathtaking two minutes where everything reaches the most awe-inspiring of climaxes. Alison Mosshart's (she of The Dead Weather and The Kills fame) vocals are strong enough to stamp out their own position amidst the sonic whirlwind that surrounds them; yet remain almost lullaby-like, singing the listener into a dream world.

In many ways, this cover is pretty faithful to the Beatles original - the fact said original is now some fourty years old gives this version breathing space to establish its own foundations. And once those are laid down, it then becomes free to work in all the relevant contemporary influences. The closest comparison is another seven minute wonder, Electronic's epic Prodigal Son from their Twisted Tenderness album. Sitar, thunderous percussion and guitar solos like a knife - Tomorrow Never Knows has them all too, an utterly transformative experience that is the very epitome of the themes Sucker Punch seeks to pursue.

Laki Mera - More Than You

Glasgow band Laki Mera work like vastly intelligent synth-pop wizzards on new track More Than You, a bleepy hook leading into subtle trip-hop atmospherics. Lead singer Laura Donnelly's vocals are gentle and comforting, the perfect accompaniment to the organic quality of the music. The sounds might be electronic but they feel distinctly real, reaching out from the speakers to touch your emotions.

The spider-like, delicate strands of sound wrap themselves around you and hold you close - after only one listen More Than You will sound like an old friend. Fans of Ellie Goulding eager for more female synth magic with great choruses need look no further than Laki Mera; this is a real standout track with the power to make you stop and listen. At its heart, More Than You is a brilliant pop track; but it is also bewitching and modern; clever music to delight the mind and warm the soul.

More Than You is released on the 21st March.

Check out the band's Myspace page here.

Clare Maguire - Light After Dark

There's such an abundance of female singer-songwriters around at the moment that you're almost spoilt for choice. But Clare Maguire is the real thing. The genuine article. I've been in love with the scattering of free downloads and EPs she's released previously but now comes the debut album, the real test of her talent.

And you know what, for my penny's worth, this is a better album than those by Jessie J and Adele that are floating around in the shops at the moment. Both of those also represent extremely strong efforts, but with Clare Maguire, she makes things seem effortless. For her, the music becomes one and the same with her. Her sound is magical, deeply soulful, and comes back to the solid core of pure beauty that are her vocals. And boy are they amazing.

There's something of a Leona Lewis to Clare's voice, that husky deepness that speaks of raw passion and lends itself so well to big power ballads. Imagine the likes of Bonnie Tyler and Alison Moyet; those big female 80s voices you just don't get anymore. Clare is all this and more.

The 80s vibe manifests itself across the album which blends icy electronics and thunderous, industrial beats with piano. The Last Dance sees Clare at her most delicate and catchy, a pop gem as strong as anything Ellie Goulding can throw out.

In terms of highlights, they comes towards the end of the album; look out for the stunning You're Electric and the title track. Both see Clare at her most epic - so much so that they become almost filmic. There's this breathtaking futuristic/gothic feeling to the sound, music to sweep up and around the arches and halls of churches and cathedrals... and then on, higher and higher to the stars... onwards to the very limits of the universe.

Light After Dark is an album without bounds. It is vastly inventive, with Clare's talent laid bare for all to see. The sound is cold, but the emotions are infinitely open; tapping into memories we've all experienced. This is music on a universal scale, and Clare most definitely has what it takes to carry it.