Sophomore success with silver lining.

Riding on the success of their debut album An Awesome Wave, in 2012, alt-J has been pretty busy. During the past two years they produced a song for the film Silver Linings Playbook, earned numerous awards (British Mercury Prize, BBC Radio 6 Album of the Year, and Ivor Novello Award for Album of the Year), released seven music videos, and toured all around the world. Despite all of this, and dealing with the departure of their bassist, Gwil Sainsbury, they have managed to generate their sophomore album, This Is All Yours.

This record has all of the key complexities and idiosyncrasies that made us fall in love with alt-J the first time around. Lead singer, Joe Newman‰’s eccentric vocal style takes the forefront on most tracks, backed by crashing drums, reverb heavy guitar melodies and snarling synth bass lines. Tracks like “Nara,‰” “Every Other Freckle,‰” and “The Gospel of John Hurt‰” will suit listeners looking for that classic alt-J sound, while others such as “Arrival in Nara,‰” “Choice Kingdom,‰” “Warm Foothills,‰” and “Pusher‰” explore a softer, more acoustic side of the band.

The album takes bigger risks with more electronic based tracks like the Miley Cyrus sampled “Hunger of the Pine‰” and “Bloodflood pt. II,‰” a different spin on “Bloodflood‰” from their debut album. Overall it can be determined that alt-J has successfully avoided the dreaded sophomore slump.

While this album lacks as many electronic-folk sounding tracks that seemed to describe their unique style, alt-J has shown growth and exploration with This Is All Yours leaving us wondering where they will go next.

Recommended Tracks: 3, 8, 9, 10, 12
RIYL: Foals, Chet Faker, Broken Bells, Bastille