"The signs are still promising for Darkstar's future."
Tapping into the UK's despondent mood last year, the icy glumness of last album Foam Island didn't provide the commercial breakthrough Darkstar might've hoped for.
But there are plenty of signs of creativity here as guest vocalist Empress Of develops her promising portfolio further on Reformer, snapping into Darkstar's sound like the missing piece of a jigsaw. Similarly, GAIKA's elastically toned rap drapes its way round the angular funk of Black Ghosts. Scheduled to return to the studio in the very near future, the signs are still promising for Darkstar's future.