M83 - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming

Even two or three years into my amateur music-writing I still find myself suddenly surprised by a musical phenomenon that's inexplicably missed my radar. M83, the five-man project from the beguiling mind of Anthony Gonzalez, have now gone a decade without so much as a tickle at my sensory feet, but earlier this year that changed (thank you, Niall, I know you're reading xoxo). There's something of a naivety about M83's music, like the direct antithesis to Sigur Rós' grown-up ethereality, and the nostalgia even finds its way into the packaging and marketing of Hurry Up, We're Dreaming, turning into a two-disc conceptualisation of dreams and imagination.

There are worse ways, too, to start an album than with an intro called 'Intro' featuring Zola Jesus. Shoegazing synths serve as little more than background noise compared to the echoing howls of Danilova and Gonzalez, before turning into a U2 tribute act on 'Reunion', which is as giddily excitable as they come. Of course the blistering single 'Midnight City' is slotted between the two in case you needed any more electronic dazzlings. Surely a potential candidate for the next Orange or O2 adverts, 'Where the Boats Go' then blasts some lamenting chords in your face for an extra dollop of 'epic'.


It's not all earth-shattering optimism though: the bleak 90s balladry on 'Wait' singlehandedly dispels all of the reverie that had previously occurred, crying "There's no end/ There is no goodbye/ Disappear with the night". To follow that with a child's anecdote about frogs and faraway fantasies is quite challenging, but the undeniable cutesiness behind 'Raconte-Moi Une Histoire' is just lovely. After a quick 'Train to Pluton' with fairly unremarkable horns, 'Claudia Lewis' greets us with some slightly shrill Empire of the Sun-like melodies that suddenly crash into funk-pop sensation. The crashes continue with 'This Bright Flash''s drums, before the first CD ends with 'When Will You Come Home?', a brief-but-beautiful starscape that hints at isolation before being reassured with 'Soon My, Friend' and its swelling promise of "I'll be yours someday".

Already this has been quite the sonic ordeal, but 'My Tears Are Becoming A Sea' sounds exactly like you'd expect an M83 song called such to sound, all slow and afflicted to begin before an almighty electric-guitar breakdown. Although the switches feel slightly bipolar by this point, the trippy indie-rock bursts from 'New Map' shine through and revert the themes to their vitalising selves. Classic synth-pop finds its way into every pore of 'OK Pal', a daftly catchy track that shimmers a little too brightly for me at times. 'Another Wave From You' seems to almost replicate the stormy emotions of Where The Boats Go, condensing more plight into 2 minutes than most can.

An obligatory piano ballad makes itself heard in 'Splendor', but it quickly drifts off into choral sighs and almost-narcotic highs. 'Year One, One U.F.O.' slaps down some nice riffs into what's otherwise been a predominantly electronic album, but 'Steve McQueen' quickly erases all memory of it with arguably the strongest hook and most frenetic instrumentations of the whole album. 'Echoes of Mine' feels like more of the synth-bluster we've heard just moments ago, and 'Klaus I Love You' welcomely varies the scenery with some classic Human League-style beats. For the 'Outro', Hurry Up fades gently away into strings-oblivion, vowing "facing tempests of dust, I'll fight until the end".


In an unimaginative pop environment it's records like this that continue to offer hope to those of us who've chosen to follow everything regardless. Every second of this expansive album seems to matter to Gonzalez and co., and its sheer ambition and execution is quite fantastic.

Rating: 9/10
Highlights: Wait, Midnight City, Steve McQueen, Splendor, Raconte-Moi Une Histoire, Claudia Lewis, Soon My Friend
Avoid: Train to Pluton seems quite pointless, but isn't terrible.

Artwork Watch: Halfway between a still from Doctor Who and a Debenhams advert for snuggies.