DARKSIDE – Psychic

The first full-length outing for Nicolas Jaar and Dave Harrington’s DARKSIDE project opens with Golden Arrow, 11 minutes of arrestingly beautiful ambient electronica, deftly embellished with Harrington’s muted guitar. Jaar’s astonishing ability to seamlessly meld techno, house and jazz within an uncanny, weightless soundworld remains in evidence; but Psychic manages to incorporate elements of prog- and post-rock, reflecting Harrington’s own influences, while still maintaining that characteristic sense of fluidity and cohesion.

The spell threatens to break when the guitar takes centre stage, as on the bluesy Paper Trails; Jaar and Harrington instead combine most effectively on languid, cosmic explorations like the closer Metatron, anchored by a dramatic, organ-led chord progression. Throughout, Jaar’s trademarks are in evidence: disorienting fluctuations in BPM, and a deceptively complex sonic tapestry, despite the ever-present sense of space. DARKSIDE’s success in opening up these soundscapes to rock’s outer realms demonstrates the duo’s remarkably intuitive creative bond. [Sam Wiseman]