Lindstrøm

Norway's Hans-Peter Lindstrøm has steadily built his reputation on a handful of neo-disco 12-inches and remixes for the likes of Franz Ferdinand and LCD Soundsystem. His 2005 single, "I Feel Space," was a geeky homage not only to the Donna Summer-Giorgio Moroder classic "I Feel Love," but also to that 1977 record's low-end, which, he enthused, was the greatest bass arpeggio ever.

At first blush, Lindstrøm follows this obsession with the more synthetic side of disco on his debut full-length, Where You Go I Go Too. The album's internal clock is timed to the tick of staccato basslines, but he achieves a surprisingly dynamic sense of narrative. A shape-shifting mix gradually pulls subterranean melodies above ground and, though a four-on-the-floor beat persists throughout, the overall effect is more akin to prog- or post-rock. On the closer "The Long Way Home," a six-and-a-half-minute excursion into ambiance pushes the beats aside and allows us to appreciate Lindstrøm's plasticine taste in ever-changing timbre. Once the song breaks open with a midtempo groove, it is at once introspective and anthemic, and in no way resembles those elaborately mixed laptop albums weighed down by too many sonic details. The track is an example of why Where You Go I Go Too works so well; the album is a rare example of emotionally intelligent dance music.