Album Review: Alice Ivy - Don't Sleep

Alice Ivy (aka Annika Schmarsel) should establish herself as a star Antipodean producer to match The Kite String Tangle or Flume with her assured sequel to 2018's auspicious I'm Dreaming. On Don't Sleep, the Melburnian instrumentalist, producer and auteur demonstrates her brilliant instincts as a curator. She brings in even bigger and buzzier feature vocalists and collaborators – still largely homegrown – such as Thelma Plum, Odette and Ngaiire (though Bertie Blackman returns for two songs, one the unexpectedly beat-switching Sweetest Love with Montaigne). Crucially, Schmarsel's sound has advanced.

Don't Sleep is closer to an art mixtape than the traditional dance music 'producer' album – and it's a thrilling excursion. It takes in those triple j-friendly singles like the hazy In My Mind with Ecca Vandal, but the new tracks are the most revelatory.

A post-EDM artist, Schmarsel revives '90s big beat – adding psych, glitch, future bass and cult pop elements. Her nostalgic, euphoric Avalanches disco cut-up aesthetic influence comes through on the summery Sunrise (with seasoned Canadian rapper Cadence Weapon, vocoder effects and cowbells) and All Hit Radio (showcasing the underground Teef & TESSA), but she's long moved beyond that outfit's plunderphonics novelty. 

The title-track is a dancehall bop with throwback rock synths – Schmarsel, Imbi and BOI conveying a message of personal autonomy. SAFIA's Ben Woolner (credited here as Benjamin Joseph) emulates the Bee Gees icon Barry Gibb's falsetto on the strutting Better Man – wonky yacht rock. Ngaiire's All In For You modernises a funk-soul groove with tropical bassline. 

Schmarsel also offers introspective numbers – prescient for the quaro. Ticket To Heaven, led by Plum, is a misty-eyed, poignant ballad, while Odette's I'll Find It could be Alicia Keys joining Fleetwood Mac. Don't Sleep is about fun and feelings – yet fastidious in its execution.