This is probably the most thought provoking release from the technoprog giant from Croatia and Music Man Records in Belgium. Spread over 3 slabs of wax (plus a free CD which includes ‘Distant Shores’ – probably his most sought after track). Several tracks wade in ambient waters, interspersed between 120 bpm gliders. ‘Brownian Interplay’ reeks of Chicago for 12 awesome minutes (click here to see the video) and this sounds comfortable on any Sunday morning. Also, check the new 12″ Stairway / The Arch for the peaktime darkness. 85/100

Erasure just dropped the 3rd single from their latest album and it’s the best one since ‘Stormchaser’, the 3rd single from their last album. They always let that 3rd one fly ‘cuz this CD has 8 tracks, 3 different songs and some great house mixes courtesy of Gareth Jones, XOQ, Wayne G & Andy Alder, JRMX and Liam Keegan. Plus, this is not a love song. It’s like a fatalistic serious track with a sliver of hope and a soaring chorus. You can see the video here. 74/100

Alright, may as well keep the Vince Clarke vibe going and talk about the full-length from VCMG, his group with Martin L. Gore from Depeche Mode. This album is 10 tight tracks of sub-bass techno. From the pacey-as-hell ‘Spock’, to the seemingly-demented new single ‘EP2 – Single Blip’ to the angry-prog of ‘Skip This Track’, there is somethingg for everyone. 2xLP comeswith a free CD in a custom cardboard slipcase and the pckage is done very nicely. I scored mine (and the 12″ for ‘Blip’) from Amazon on the cheap and am pleased as punch. 81/100