Patterns: Waking Lines

It's often easy – too easy, perhaps – to pinpoint a band's influences. Patterns blend the avant garde approach Animal Collective and Deerhunter with the commercialism of Bastille (although they'd probably deny it), but the Mancunian quartet have crafted an album that's largely durable and occasionally even uplifting. The celebratory bursts of melody and electronics on Blood and Street Fires drum up vibrant enthusiasm and keep it a priority throughout. The cleansing intro of the title track, comprised of bells found in a local monastery, cleanses the palette, and the dreamy Wrong Two Words provides breathing space among the rhythmic cacophony. The comparatively drab indie band chug of Induction sees Patterns temporarily lose their drive, but it's a minor blip on an album that is creative in the face of imitativeness. musicalpatterns.com Download: Waking Lines, Street Fires