Beginning with the bubbling intensity of "Twin Lanes," with the initial hyperactivity then matched by a swelling, romantically inclined string part, Mist embrace the exploratory synth revival of the 21st century with a sprightly sweetness that isn't always found in the more majestic or dark-sounding acts currently in the field. It's not that the duo's third album, House, sounds either naïve or giddy in an early synth pop vein, but there's a sense of high energy that nicely offsets more rigorous moments, which -- given members John Elliott and Sam Goldberg's work elsewhere on a variety of projects -- allows them to put just enough of their own collective stamp on things. As House moves on, some of that steady, focused feeling comes more to the fore, suiting the lengthy songs well -- if there's an inescapable feeling of going over old ground on the one hand, whether from their other work or their inspirations, there's enough of a sense that songs like "I Can Still Hear Your Voice" come out of pop, or an appreciation of how a pop hook can be a mantra in its own right. In keeping with the initial song, Mist aim for synthscape as emotional swoon, a blend of overtly alien mystery and a feeling that things are still human and, indeed, romantic -- besides the song title of "I Can Still Hear Your Voice," all the more pointed since like the rest of the album it is an instrumental, there's also the flow of the dual title track "Mist House," the core synth loop eventually fading away into a gentle conclusion. "Daydream," meanwhile, eschews a tight loop from the start, its high-pitched shimmer all brightness and light float that has an implied tension at most, but mostly aims at a blissful, continuous rise. There's also something to be said for their sense of humor, given that the second half of one song is called "Ovary Stunts."
© Ned Raggett /TiVo