“North” by Darkstar a daring electronic album

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Darkstar make their full length debut with “North,” a fresh and exciting intro and one of the strongest electronic records of 2010.

The UK electronic trio received universal critical acclaim for last year’s single, “Aidy’s Girl Is A Computer,” which is included on “North.” That track’s two-step shuffle and woozy production resulted in its high ranking on many year-end lists, garnering the then-duo lots of attention in the dubstep and electronic scenes.

Darkstar could’ve gone in two directions after “Aidy’s” — either continue making tracks in the same vein or go somewhere entirely new.

Luckily for listeners, Darkstar took the road less traveled, opting to scrap nearly a full length’s worth of material and start over, keeping only two tracks from their initial draft.

The result is “North,” an apt title for a gorgeous, icy and melancholic electronic album.

Perhaps the most immediate difference those familiar with Darkstar’s initial singles will notice is the more song-centric mode of composition Darkstar chose for “North.”

The songs evolve in a way not unlike pop music and also feature a sole human voice, that of James Buttery, who takes up the role of lead singer.

Though much of his vocal work is processed in different ways, sometimes sounding as if it were coming through an unreliable cell phone connection, it adds an emotive aspect to the songs that would’ve otherwise been impossible to achieve and the effect is staggering.

The album highlight “Under One Roof” finds all of the group’s elements coming together in the most effective and transcendent way: the warm, woozy synths, the icy, sputtering percussion, Buttery’s, well, buttery vocals and emotional lyrics, all harmonious and perfectly mixed, creating a devastating and endlessly-repeatable electro-pop track.

It’s difficult to come up with a fitting point of reference for Darkstar. The one that has been thrown around the most in pre-release reviews is Junior Boys, an electro-pop group which was well received in the indie scene that shares Darkstar’s rather melancholic sound.

However, where Junior Boys’ melancholy is never afraid to dip down to maudlin depths, Darkstar’s somehow feels more genuine, emotionally heavy without being emotionally draining.

It may be dark and cold in “North,” but it’s not impenetrable or unrelenting, perhaps a better fit for blustery fall days with leaves crunching beneath your feet than in a blizzard where you can’t see five feet ahead of you.

“North” is an incredibly exciting debut. The album will be released Oct. 19 on Hyperdub Records and currently can be streamed for free at www.npr.org.