Boom Bip – Zig Zaj

In recent years, producer Bryan 'Boom Bip' Hollon has shown a desire to connect the dots between his electro-purist roots and the hippest realms of the indie-sphere, most notably with Neon Neon, the collaborative project between Hollon and Super Furry Animals leader Gruff Rhys. By comparison Zig Zaj is a much more understated affair, with guests tailored to suit the more brooding nature of the music: Franz Ferdinand frontman Alex Kapranos gives a notable, uncharacteristically dark vocal performance on Goodbye Lovers and Friends.

The lengthier instrumental sections reveal blissful elements of krautrock and drone (see Pele and Reveal), showing that Hollon's palette is certainly expanding, but his insistence on pushing conventional live drumming to the fore doesn't always work. Whereas Neon Neon's Stainless Style took its influences and ran with them in an over-the-top way, Zig Zaj doesn't break out enough. It's the more experimental moments here that hint at something greater. [Ross Watson]