Reviewed by Andy Shaw

This is the followup to his 2014 debut 'Shadowlands'. Born in Michigan, Parker spent many years honing his art self-releasing a number of records before catching the attention of Dream Records' dance affiliate Drom. As well as producing his own material Matthew also has a growing reputation for producing outstanding remixes for the likes of Capital Kings and Jonathan Thulin. Clocking in at just shy of the hour mark, there is a lot of music crammed into this record covering a diverse range of styles and sounds. Showing a willingness to experiment with his sound, you never know what you are going to get next from hip hop to pop to dub step to pumping dance track you are kept on your toes waiting to see what will come next. This variety certainly keeps things interesting for the listener but can at times feel jarring with the record not always have a natural flow to it. The record opens with the title track which is a feel good pop hit with a sing-along chorus. This is followed by uplifting dance track "Ghost" with trance style synth strings. "Unstoppable" comes next full of heavy dub step beats and huge drops making it three different genres in the first three tracks. A number of collaborators have been brought in to add their talents to the record with the likes of Tristan Peace adding his rapping skills to "Remember Me" and Hillary Jane providing vocals on the dub heavy "System Victim". Parker shows an ability to combine influences on tracks like genre defying "Down In Flames" with a rock guitar solo, pop vocal, dub beats and EDM synths. This record acts as a good showcase of Matthew Parker's production skills over a range of genres but as an album it feels a bit disjointed. But taking each track in isolation, I wouldn't say there are any bad tracks and this is definitely a set lovers of club rhythms will want to investigate.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

Interested in reviewing music? Find out more here.