The synthesizer called and Young Galaxy answered. On their third studio full-length, the Canadian indie-pop trio have gone all-out digital, laying down their guitars as sacrificial lambs and bowing to the altar of '80s electro-pop legends like Eurythmics and Depeche Mode. And they don't waste time showing off their sea change — opener "The Angels Are Surely Weeping" is super-melodic and a tad intense, unfurling overdubs of deep-space synths with an assured sleight of hand. "Take an axe to the frozen seasons" feels like an appropriate wake-up call. You'd hardly believe all this comes from the same band who crafted frustratingly overlooked dream-pop gems like "Outside the City." And you certainly can't say they're half-assing it:
Shapeshifting sounds as if it might have been recorded after an indulgent weekend visit to a Moog clinic. There are synths that buzz, synths that whiz, synths that glow in the dark — the luxurious texture may put you in an electro-psych trance. But Young Galaxy are greedy. Not satisfied with being masters of atmosphere, they also aim for hooks — most of which are not sticky enough to jolt you back to the waking world.
