Love Me Inside is a track that builds off of the foundations laid by a variety of electronic styles – there is ambient, chillwave, and trance all present here. The band is able to create something fresh and vibrant off of the works of acts like Morcheeba, Massive Attack, and even Homogenic-era Bjork. The band creates an infectious track that does not sound like anything that is currently being played on radio. Lick You Up adds a more raucous draping to what has previously been heard. Rather than tackling a different style of music with each cut, XO is able to build and install various components onto their one of a kind frame. This means that the same germ can be heard through the whole of Lover’s Blood, but that an effort like Lick You Up is fueled by influences as separate as Prodigy and Plastikman.
We Live Again succeeds not only because of the haunting, atmospheric feeling that is present, but because of the tremendous momentum that the band whips up. The presence of a set of vocals that further the instrumental arrangements (are more of an instrument than a narrative tool) makes this track into one of the best on Lover’s Blood. Deeper, Harder, Sweeter is a track that would be at home on XM’s BPM or Electric Area. The chaotic track will throw in a number of sounds and influences, but XO shows again that they are talented enough to rein everything in. Lover’s Blood may yet be in the running for best EDM / electronic album that we have reviewed in 2013. Check it out at their Reverbnation or their main website.
Top Tracks: We Live Again, Deeper, Harder, Sweeter
Rating: 8.7/10
XO Lover’s Blood CD Review / 2013 Self / 10 Tracks / http://www.reverbnation.com/xobeat / http://xobeat.com