How a sound can achieve crisp, cool precision yet be as warm and comforting as a double duvet is perhaps down to Royksopp’s balance of the natural and the synthetic. On Melody A.M. the Norwegian duo of Svein Berge and Torbjorn Brundtland capture a sense of time and space, of melody and rhythm that is dreamy, eerie and irie all at once. Honing their musical proclivities whilst at school together explains the chemistry inherent in their partnership, The early experimentation with ambiences and electronics has paid off. Melody A.M.’s layered instrumentation interspersed with dramatic synthlines, lush beats and tripped-out vocals delivers a top-class album that deserves to launch Royksopp into an aurora borealis of their own. This is the good stuff.