Azure Ray
New Resolution

This song is sex. Poking their heads out of the sparse alt-folk furrow they've ploughed for the past few years, little-known but cultishly revered Saddle Creekers Azure Ray have produced a startling work of electronic art. Opening with a high, tense piano kick not unlike the intro to Tori Amos' 'Cornflake Girl' before giving way to low, serpentine vocals coiled seductively around a tense rhythmic structure, 'New Resolution' utterly breaks from the fragile, acoustic-led songs they've become known for; beneath its unfussy, weightless framework lies a very definite feeling of resilience, and all previous traces of prettiness or girlishness in the female duo's vocals are eradicated mercilessly in favour of a decidedly less innocent tone.

'New Resolution' makes its entrance under a deceptively sultry and sly guise, its melodies hugging the ground and hiding behind a select few shadowy, alluring notes. Within the space of three minutes it graduates seamlessly into a cascade of shimmering orchestral gloss and globulous, squashy beats with the texture and character of a rubber wrecking ball - the effect is at once sensual and heart-rending. Within the context of the three-minute pop song, it's a masterpiece, and may well be the trigger that launches Azure Ray into popular consciousness.