Hiraeth Netherlands Vinyl & CDs

Review: On their hotly anticipated debut album, Passive Refraction invites us up to the "27th Floor" of an imaginary hotel in the heart of Tokyo, a place where you can gaze in wonder at the neon-lit cityscape. Musically, it's an immersive experience, where dreamy, slowly unfurling ambient chords and vivid synthesizer sounds reminiscent of Vangelis' "Blade Runner" soundtrack intertwine with sampled voices, hazy aural textures and quietly loved-up melodies. It's the kind of album that you can imagine being classed as a 21st century ambient classic 20 or 30 years from now, which we think you'll agree is high praise indeed.