Mikey Young - Your Move Vol. 1 (2017)

Mikey Young is a name fans of Australian music know very well, especially if they're readers of the fine print on the back of albums. As a musician he was part of two brilliant and influential bands, Eddy Current Suppression Ring and Total Control, but his main gig seems to be mixing and mastering almost every cool album from down under that was released in the mid-2010s, from Chook Race to Royal Headache to King Gizzard. Bands from all over the world also used his keen ear to help bring their records to fruition, including Doug Tuttle and Tyvek. With a contact list that long, one might have expected Young's first solo album to be a star-studded indie rock blow out. Instead, Your Move, Vol. 1 is a completely solo album that shows off Young's skills as a maker of instrumental electronic music. He's fully versed in the work of Tangerine Dream, an influence that's most clear on the 20-minute-long "Enigmatic Cosmic Enforcer"; he knows a thing or two about crafting catchy songs that sound like vintage synth demo tracks ("Lord Barrel," Walking for Pleasure"), and he can get ambient when the occasion calls for it ("Cairns"). He's even made what sound like a classic synth pop track with the vocalist booted off with the super catchy "Socks." That song is the only one to prominently feature any guitar, with Young ripping off a gnarly backward solo near the end. Young's ability to match cool sounds with strong melodies makes Your Move, Vol. 1 easy to listen to; either as background music suited to a wide variety of activities or as active listening on the more upbeat tracks. No matter how one spins it, the album is more proof that Mikey Young is a name worth following wherever it turns up.