The Twilight Sad - No-One Can Ever Know

The sombre but striking Scots’ third release sees them switch tack to synths - and make arguably the best record of their career.

The third record from this under-the-radar Scottish outfit is a marked departure from the intense, wall-of-sound guitars of its predecessors.

While James Graham retains his darkly mysterious poetry, ominous timbre and fiercely-rolled ‘R’s, No-One Can Ever Know sounds like Bladerunner burning through endless Scottish sink estates on an ashen motorbike.

Its nine tracks head down an electronic, synth-fuelled motorik road, surveying intensely bleak, sometimes monumental soundscapes.

It might sound a bit much, but bear with it - where Editors played at being gaunt-faced, ‘80s-apeing miserablists, The Twilight Sad feel like the real deal but add a serrated, contemporary edge.

It’s taut, sparse, ominous and ocassionally threatening - in the best and most evocative sense. These fierce symphonies from the doldrums are not for the faint-hearted.

4 stars