PRESTATYN duo Under Alien Skies have emerged from the studio with their sensational debut EP Powder.
Hot on the heels of their jaw-dropping demo, 'retro' and 'progressive' are intertwined over the six track offering which is sure to cement their standing as a North Wales group to watch out for.
Kicking off the album is The Flamingo's flavoured FYODOR complete with surfer backing vocals and haunting, echoed guitar; while calming waves crash gently in the background.
Soft and swaying, the lullaby-esque opener is impossibly catchy and irrefutably remarkable regarding both song-craft and production.
The same lush sound carries on with the impressive Cracks.
Spanish flamenco guitar leads the track while dual vocals cavort over the verses as atmospheric tones punctuate throughout.
It's a dance in every sense - between old and new, conventional and ground-breaking, classic and experimental.
And it works beautifully, drawing in elements from soundscape masters like Brian Eno before injecting the grace and fragility of Sigur Ros.
Classical piano tussles with deep synths in the brief Caller ID as the upbeat Bloodsport returns to the 50's sound of the opening track (but still coated in contemporary instrumentation with a brief stop via the 80's for melody influence).
But then a change as Amine shows a rougher side to Under Alien Skies.
Taking cues from artists like Union Of Knives, an industrial undertone of looped samples nestles beneath a textured array of bells and whistles as the swelling track verges on drum and bass.
Disparate genres and periods are drawn together throughout Powder to create an eclectic and thoroughly engaging release.
All over the place it may be, but certainly not in a negative way
Bottling the inspiration of the North Wales landscape, Under Alien Skies defy the rigid paint-by-numbers regime of songwriting in favour of a freeform approach; creating a startlingly original EP which yearns for multiple plays.
Regardless of your taste in music - from death-metal to classical - you are sure to be swept up by the beauty of this stunning standout release.