Stars At The Light

The sounds that emanate from the speakers when first dipping into Moon Duos seventh studio album, Stars Are the Light, are different enough from previous works that it wouldnt be all that wrong to wonder if maybe there was a mix-up at the pressing plant. Flying is languid and hazy, with Ripley Johnsons guitar dialed deep back in the mix, sequenced synths up front, and a shuffling slow-motion funk beat slowly pushing the song forward while Johnson and keyboardist Sanae Yamadas vocals are relaxed to the point of somnambulance, even more than usual. It doesnt sound much like classic Moon Duo and only sharp-eared listeners who remember the track Mirrors Edge from 2017s Occult Architecture, Vol. 2 might recognize the new direction this track, and most of the album, is heading. Working with Sonic Boom on the mixing desk and heavily inspired by shimmering disco and the ambient pop of the 90s, the duo cast their old ways of working and sounding aside in favor of something lighter, softer, and more sparkly. Stars works pretty well as a slice of escapist, warm-blooded dance-pop. In songs like The World and the Sun or the title track, where the drums rattle back and forth, the bass gets a groove going, and the guitar and synth give off glittering sparks, the band bump right up against the kind of trancey, blissed-out feel they are aiming for. The slower pieces dont work quite as well, though even these are made pleasant by Johnsons snaking guitar leads (Fall [In Your Love]) and the expansive mixing Mr. Boom provides. Hidden near the end of the album, coming just as eyelids are starting to droop, Eye 2 Eye delivers the churning guitars and propulsive beats one might expect from the band. The record ends peacefully with the calmest, most tripped-out ballad of the bunch, Fever Night. ~ Tim Sendra