On their full-length debut,
Depersonalisation
,
Nite Fields
build on the blurred-around-the-edges blend of shoegaze, post-punk, and electronics they pioneered on the singles released by singer
Danny Venzin
's
Lost Race
imprint. Produced by
HTRK
Nigel Lee-Yang
, the album's clearer sonics and smoother blend of guitars, synths, and drum machines opens up the band's sound, paradoxically making it more dreamlike. The change is fitting for
's meditations on disconnection, emphasizing the woozy detachment of "Come Down" and "Winter's Gone," an epic that ultimately thaws the album's chilly demeanor. While
flirt with pop from time to time on the album -- most vividly on "You I Never Knew," which recalls
the Church
's ghostly jangle without sounding too derivative -- much of
's allure comes from how well the band captures bottomless longing via open-ended songs. When
Venzin
stretches the word "desire" into several syllables on "Fill the Void," it still doesn't seem to encompass the fullness of his emptiness. Touches like these reflect just how much
have grown since their early days, and how
transforms their potential into a beautifully bummed-out fever dream of a debut. ~ Heather Phares