A Trace To Keep Control – Present Paradox (reviewed by Dave Franklin)

There are albums which are happy just to follow a signature sound to its logical conclusion, bands that make music according to a template for fans who want more of the same, and artists who want to tick boxes and meet the audiences expectations. They are not the ones that do it for me. I prefer albums that take ideas to their illogical and unexpected conclusions. Bands that make music for themselves rather than the punter. Artists who are outside the box and happy to subvert listener expectations. And that’s why _A Trace To Keep Control_ has me grinning from ear to ear as I play it.

Not only has *Present Paradox* made an album that reminds me of all manner of post-punkery from my formative days – everything from *Sisters of Mercy* vocals to *Depeche Mode*’s sonic sheens, and from *Soft Cell*’s digitalia to *Dead Can Dance*’s exploratory and worldly grooves – but it updates these ideas brilliantly.

It does so by taking a familiar post-punk electro-vibe and weaving everything from raw guitars to muted saxophones, krautrock-infused, motorik beats and unexpectedly jazzy fusions, chilled dancefloor sophistication and anthemic crescendos, through its beating heart. 

But this is more than mere nostalgia. It might tug on a few sonic heartstrings and play with our memories, (not to mention our record collections) but this is an album that is certainly more about where it is going than where it has been.