{grate 2.5} Anthony Gonzales of shoegazetronic project M83 must have a
master plan to slowly evolve into My Bloody Valentine, because Saturdays=Youth
shamelessly nabs more from those reverb rockers’ steez than his two past
releases ever did.

For example, “Kim & Jessie” evokes such strong deja vu
that you’d swear it’s a Loveless b-side done by a MBV cover band. Everything is
in place; the guitar and synth tones melting into each other to create a pillow
of fuzz, the percussion pared down to a simple kick/snare setup and the somber
falling-asleep vocals.

Of course, the sentimental techno suites are still around,
albeit toned down and drawn out in excess (see closer “Midnight Souls Still
Remain”). “Skin of the Night” adds wispy feminine vocals to the mix, along with
even bigger drum hits and textured guitar bombast, reminiscent of British band
Lush but with less mysterious beauty.

M83’s melodramatic vocal snippets about death and emo poetry
also make a comeback on the single “Graveyard Girl,” proving that sentimental
novelties can only be effective so many times before they get ridiculous.

To be fair, Gonzales’ work has always been perfect for
nighttime walks with headphones, the buzzing pads layered so tall that it’s
hard not to stop and soak them in. Unfortunately, his new forays into Chemical
Brothers’ trip-hop on “Couleurs” and lethargic buildups on piano ballad “Too
Late” never achieve the same emotional potency and come across as worn demos —
practice for the “real” record down the line.

But perhaps M83’s prime has already passed and must be
acknowledged as such; deep down we knew that nothing could ever top the fiery
skate intro to “Fully Flared.”