Album Review: Expatriate - Hyper/Hearts

Five years on from their debut, In the Midst Of This, and having relocated to Berlin, Expatriate are finally ready to drop their second album, Hyper/Hearts. Recorded in Wales, mixed in London and then largely remixed in Berlin, the album is infused with European influences. Intro track, Miracle Mile, with its swelling synths and throbbing bass takes a page out of New Order's book, and is a strong opener for the album. By Design follows in a similar way – a restless and dense track, the catchy chorus and sound is comparable to Editors. Do You Remember, sounding like it has been pulled straight from The Cure's B-sides, is another song that highlights the strengths within this band and prove that Expatriate have the talent and skill to create great electro-indie rock tracks.

The problem with Hyper/Hearts is that the band haven't utilised that talent enough to create a great electro-indie rock album. None of their tracks are bad but the further into Hyper/Hearts you go, the more forgettable are the songs. After the rousing rock ballad, It's You, each song on the album tends to blur into the other, creating half an album that is simply alright. Obviously as stand-alone tracks, they all have their merits but for an album that was basically mixed and produced twice, there should be more variation and more authority within the album as a whole.

Hyper/Hearts starts out as a solid second effort from a band that has been missed on the Australian music scene for the past five years, and there are definitely some great tracks on the album, which the boys should be proud of, but as an album it just falls a little flat.