Rating: 4/5 stars

This past Friday, 3LAU, otherwise known as Justin Blau, released his debut album titled “Ultraviolet.” The American EDM artist began turning heads in 2014 with his original single “How You Love Me,” featuring Bright Lights, which had dominated the radio and finished the year as “Most Played Record of the Year” on SiriusXM’s BPM. After visiting Sweden in his sophomore year of college, Blau fell in love with electric dance music and began creating when he returned to the United States. 3LAU has now become a favorite on the club scene.

“Ultraviolet,” the album-titled track, opens with a serene and gradual buildup. Purely sound-and-lyric less, 3LAU does this two more times on the 11-track album. As bookmarks and breathers throughout the album, 3LAU uses songs “Winter” and “Arcana,” which are each distinct and fitting toward the songs that follow.

“Ultraviolet is the first time I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone,” 3LAU said. “I wanted to upgrade my original melodic house style by adding depth through real instrumentation. Every song on the album has organic texture, as every song was originally written on a real instrument (piano, guitar, drums).”

“Touch,” featuring Carly Paige, is rhythmic and catchy. “Do you feel it? / Drifting slowly down / Do you feel it? / Do you feel it? / All this distance / I’ve been reaching out / Do you feel it? / Do you feel the way we’re falling outta touch?”

Beyond catchy and groovy, “Own My Own” is a feel-good and liberating track. “Lose myself tonight / I’m drifting away through the flashing lights / I just wanna stay out here alone, I can dance on my own / And I can’t wait no more, I’m drifting away / What you waiting for? / I just wanna stay out here alone, we can dance on our own.”

“Star Crossed,” a personal favorite, has an ascending backdrop with contrasting, descending lyrics. “We’re not star crossed lovers / Falling over each other / We’re not star crossed lovers / Don’t tell me that it feels like love when it’s not / Don’t tell me that it feels like love.”

“You Want More” is the only track to feature a male vocalist, Max Schneider and his rough and wry voice meshes well with the smoothness of the song. “You Want More,” featuring MAX, otherwise known as Schneider, “Did I say too much? / Do you need more time? / If your love is free, baby, so is mine / Baby, so is mine.”

“Ultraviolet” is a well-crafted and impressive debut from 3LAU. If one is looking for a relaxing yet energized track list, this album is perfect. Whether you want to push through assignments or dance, there is bound to be something for everyone on “Ultraviolet.”

Image from 3LAU via YouTube.com