M83 - Fantasy

2xLPs Available in 2 Color Variants Described by M83's Anthony Gonzalez as some of his most personal work, Fantasy does indeed capture what makes his music tick: an unabashed, maximalist love of spinning dreams. Gonzalez may have shied away from making anything quite as crowd-pleasing as Hurry Up, We're Dreaming in the years following that double album's release, but Fantasy's reveries reveal he hasn't lost any of his talent for crafting massive sound worlds. Building from a ringing acoustic guitar -- an instrument not usually associated with M83's fusion of synth pop and shoegaze -- the confident expanse of "Water Deep"'s synths and strings feels equally appropriate for a blockbuster movie soundtrack or a blockbuster musical statement of Gonzalez's own creation. On the suite-like "Kool Nuit," the mood shifts from dusky contemplation bedecked with harp, strings, and fluttering analog synths to streaking electronics that build to a climax that's dramatic even by M83's standards. Gonzale