St. Lucia - Matter (2016) [Official Digital Download]

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St. Lucia - Matter (2016) [Official Digital Download]

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St. Lucia - Matter (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24-bit/48 kHz | Time - 53:54 minutes | 735 MB
Studio Master, Official Digital Download | Artwork: Front cover

Brooklyn's St. Lucia return with their second album of buoyant, infectiously melodic synth pop, 2016's Matter. The album follows up the group's acclaimed 2013 effort, When the Night. As with that album, Matter showcases the talents of lead singer/songwriter Jean-Philip Grobler, who has expanded St. Lucia from a solo effort into a full-fledged band. In many ways, Matter picks up where When the Night left off, with a set of anthemic songs that often sound as if they were culled from the soundtrack to an '80s John Hughes film. However, where When the Night hewed closer to the modern indie pop of band's like MGMT and Foster the People, on Matter, Grobler zeroes in on his older influences, crafting an album that's much closer to 1986 than 2016. This kind of pastel- and DayGlo-hued dance music vibe permeates all of Matter, and cuts like "Do You Remember" and the sparkling "Dancing on Glass" showcase Grobler's highly resonant vocal chops, bringing to mind Songs from the Big Chair-era Tears for Fears. Similarly, tracks like "Game 4 U," "Rescue Me," and "The Winds of Change," mix pulsing keyboards and crystalline guitar lines much in the same way band's like the Fixx and Duran Duran did in their prime. That said, while Grobler certainly displays an obvious love for vintage new wave and synth pop, these songs wouldn't be as compelling if they weren't crafted as well as they are. Ultimately, Matter is an uplifting, hooky album that makes synthy, '80s romance sound as fresh as ever.