Like Jean Michel Jarre with a dollup of Steve Reich, or Tangerine Dream being fronted by Kevin Shields, France's M83 is one of the newest alchemists who spin magic out of new age and ambient pop. Their debut album, 2003's Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts, shook me to my very foundation. It was like listening to Air's Moon Safari for the first time, but I didn't feel as sleazy afterwords. Original member Nicholas Fromageau has gone on to pursue other work, so Before The Dawn Heals Us is essentially a solo effort by Anthony Gonzalez.

Before The Dawn Heals Us definitely doesn't stray too far from the bread and butter formula that Dead Cities had listeners fawning over, but there is a new element that wasn't present before. Gonzalez has added English vocals to nearly half of this album, and to be honest, my feelings are decidedly mixed. Sometimes the vocals work well, like on the awesome first single "Don't Save Us From The Flames," or the Ben from Cyann & Ben led "Farewell/Goodbye," but sometimes they can be less than stellar like on the extremely tedious "Can't Stop."

Thankfully though, fans of Dead Cites have the other half of the album with no vocals to look forward to. The Sonic Youth inspired "Fields, Shorelines And Hunters" is top-notch work, and the oddly titled "*" is a fun exercise in stop/start energy that leaves the lister exhausted. "Car Chase Terror" is just exactly that. Try and listen to that song (and the terrified woman's voice) in the dark and not get scared, I dare you.

Before The Dawn Heals Us overall fails to be the mind blowing work that Dead Cities was, but at least it's a much better second effort than when Air gave us the beyond self indulgent 10,000 Hz Legend. Also going for M83 is that nearly no one sounds anything like them at the moment. That kind of originality these days is definitely hard to come by, and must be commended. If you're looking for something fresh and different, this is certainly it.