By: Courtney Miller and Jessica Whitesel

Skin – Flume

When I first listened to this album, I was instantly reminded of my best friend. The mix of wild and calm playing off of each other to create perfect balance, all the while managing to be soothing, just reminded me of the kind of relationship that we have.

Sappy stuff aside, this is a beautifully constructed album. Every song just seamlessly flows into one another creating this somewhat disorienting sense if you end up missing the subtle transitions between tracks. I am making this sound like a fault, but it isn’t. Most albums play like they are trying to be hit factories, and all thought that should go into creating them is just forgotten. This isn’t the case with Skin.

If anything the single “Never Be Like You” sticks out the most, not because it is a single but because it just feels different from the rest of the album. Since it’s the second track though, it doesn’t throw off the well-constructed feel of the album as much as it could.

This is the kind of album that proves the importance of thinking about how songs flow. It’s also one that even non-EDM fans could enjoy, just because of the balancing between wild and calm. –JW

7/27 – Fifth Harmony

The album 7/27 is Fifth Harmony’s hotly anticipated follow-up to their debut, Reflection. The new album has a confidence that wasn’t present in Reflection, and with that confidence comes a freshness that wasn’t quite there before. It’s filled with self-actualization, swagger, and a more mature, sophisticated sound.

Album openers “That’s My Girl” and “Work From Home” follow 2015’s “Worth It” in style, and echo Rihanna’s own lyrical success (“Work, work, work, work, work, work”). OK, so it’s not a magnum opus, but it has some winners that make up for the others.

A great thing about Fifth Harmony is that the vocals go around. No one does so much more than the others, and they’ve really nailed that with this album. You can tell they tried to be more vulnerable with this record, especially with “Write on Me.” But the album closer “Not That Kinda Girl” might just be the best song on the album, and hopefully a tease of what’s to come. –CM

I Am Your Man – Daniel Wesley

I Am Your Man is the seventh record from BC’s own Daniel Wesley. It’s the first release from his label Beachgrove Records, and was made possible via Kickstarter. The album is full of laidback, sun-splashed tunes perfect for the coming summer. The Caribbean definitely influenced the album’s sound, particularly in the single “Shake” and “Come at Me,” the album’s first song.

Well-crafted, tight, and more acoustic-based than some of his previous work, I Am Your Man is full of light melodies that’ll have you singing along in no time. He also does some experimental work: “Beautiful” sounds inspired by the ‘80s, and “Funky Jam” is a fun, jazzy instrumental that’ll have you whipping out the air instruments.

It’s a record full of happy, relaxing music. Life is a great thing, and Wesley really tries to share that high-up feeling with every listener. –CM