DSVII pulls off what it sets out to accomplish with aplomb: it is a pleasant album full of lush instrumentation and suites of sound that are gently evocative.
Its follow-up to 2007’s Digital Shades, Vol. 1 is decidedly richer and fuller in sound and substance, giving evidence of frontman Anthony Gonzalez’s growth as an artist and as a person.
DSVII is meant to be listened to as one piece, rather than dissected into its smaller, equal parts. As you move along the album, it becomes clear that the characters are the listeners. It is up to us to decide the story that we wish to tell. Gonzalez is simply there to guide us along.
Released 12 years after Digital Shades Vol. 1, M83’s new collection of instrumentals doubles as a playful tribute to classic video-game soundtracks.
It's a soothing and inspiring listen, especially for fans who love vintage sounds and period details as much as Gonzalez does.
It's on these longer, wide-angle tracks that the album really shines, and fans who thought the stricter pop playbook Gonzalez has been using recently was perhaps too strict should find much to like in these more open-ended pieces.
While it still doesn’t feel like a proper follow-up to Junk, DSVII remains a cohesive, intriguing sonic detour for M83, even if certain moments are more engaging and captivating than others.
M83's follow-up to 2007's ambient collection Digital Shades Vol. 1 lacks the ingenuity of his pioneering predecessors' output and the thrill-ride wonder of the genres he set out to salute.
While these tracks aren’t necessarily bad by any definition, they certainly lack the charisma that M83 is known for.
Its 15 instrumental tracks do provide a pinch of mythical fun, but the album is too restless to convincingly evoke the starry-eyed longing of the band’s best work.
Unfortunately, DSVII —like Junk— looks backward without bringing anything new to the table.
This album just kinda exists.
DSV2 is the really unneeded sequel to one of M83 lamest projects DSV1. With the exception of Hell Riders and a few other tracks, this album really doesn't do anything special compared to other ambient albums or even other video game soundtracks. There is so little I can talk about with this album, because it really doesn't give me anything to talk about. In concept, this album has potential, with some of the soundtracks it pulls from that SNES / PS1 (shit like ... read more
This is my first M83 album, and it was not a good listening. this record is so faceless, like, a lot of amateurs ambient producers could make this album because there’s nothing special here, Sometimes the production annoyed me, it’s poor ambient music that doesn’t go nowhere.
Another problem was, there’s too much tracks here and some of them are the same thing in and infinite loop, it’s going and going but it doesn’t go nowhere, I felt blasé listening ... read more
Unlike many others, I grew fond of M83's Digital Shades series of albums. I like it when artists go out of their usual style and nailing it, and Digital Shades ticks the boxes of what I expect in an ambient-leaning record. This was showcased in the original "Digital Shades Vol. 1", which I'll eventually review when the time is right.
That being said, DSVII threw me off when I first listened to it. This record just sounded *different* from the original Digital Shades that I know and ... read more
This album isn't bad, it's just very uninteresting and sounds like a bunch of other albums from the mid 70s to early 80s. I feel a little bad giving this such a low rating because I do genuinely enjoy the songs on this album, it just bores the hell out of me. There is no reason this had to be almost an hour long with 15 songs. My standout tracks are: "A Taste of the Dusk," "Oh Yes You're There, Everyday," "A Word of Wisdom," and "Hell Riders."
This album is one I think gets crazy overlooked. It feels exactly like some sort of high fantasy adventure like depicted on the cover. The mix of synths, live instruments and rich melodic textures is unlike any other thing I can think of. The deep and wide ambience of tracks like Colonies, Mirage, and the first half of temple of sorrow is awesome. Every track here has its own personal flair and individuality within the world this album creates. If the covers of 1980s fantasy and sci-fi books ... read more
1 | Hell Riders 6:47 | 58 |
2 | A Bit of Sweetness 3:36 | 56 |
3 | Goodbye Captain Lee 2:25 | 57 |
4 | Colonies 4:37 | 57 |
5 | Meet the Friends 3:02 | 46 |
6 | Feelings 3:55 | 60 |
7 | A Word of Wisdom 1:42 | 54 |
8 | Lune De Fiel 3:43 | 61 |
9 | Jeux D'Enfants 2:08 | 52 |
10 | A Taste of the Dusk 3:51 | 56 |
11 | Lunar Son 2:45 | 58 |
12 | Oh Yes You're There, Everyday 5:05 | 54 |
13 | Mirage 2:46 | 57 |
14 | Taifun Glory 3:14 | 57 |
15 | Temple of Sorrow 7:04 | 69 |