Digitonal – Save Your Light for Darker Days

Digitonal’s blend of orchestral musicians and down-played beats is a surprising success; with subtle symphonic passages and an ear for dynamics, it neatly avoids sounding like the usual guff that emerges when DJs fumble around with classical samples as a substitute for originality. At times the arrangements echo Nick Drake’s pastoral soundscapes, and there’s the same emotional timbre to the likes of 93 Years On that made Bryter Layter such a masterpiece. It’s a rare treat to encounter such genuinely introspective music, but Digitonal also express a driving surety that lifts the listener to the skies, to float above the crass mediocrity of so much electronica. A Lighter Touch exemplifies their expert attention to detail, with glitchy scratches and pops reproducing vintage vinyl sounds, before evolving into euphoric, potent breaks. They even manage to use a harp without sounding contrived. This is one of the strongest albums of the summer, and a truly powerful piece of work that will be on my MP3 player for months to come.[Liam Arnold]