Cerulean

His most cohesive work to date, finding parity in both its nostalgia and its modernity, and yes, through its forward-thinking and innovative collaborators. It’s a dance-pop album in parts, and a creative powerhouse in others.

It's possible that hyperpop purists and longtime Harle fans will wince at the sanded-down edges and softened tones that make up this album — go listen to "Boing Beat" or "Interlocked" for an ungentle reminder of how bonkers Harlecore remains a half-decade a later. And yet, Cerulean is undeniably fun, and cements Harle's standing as a singular artist in the world of progressive pop.

Caroline Polachek fares best of all Harle’s features; in both “Azimuth” and “On and On,” she iterates a dancefloor diva more at home at Camelot than, say, either the Paradise Garage or Pacha, and Harle really sounds like he’s having fun honoring her commitment to the bit. Other vocals fail to emulsify.

Cerulean is an uplifting and adventurous record from an artist who understands pop music.

If you view the days when Cascada, Kelly Llorenna and the Trance Nation compilations bestrode the charts as a nonpareil high point in pop history, fill your boots. For the rest of us, it’s an experience that’s sugary and intense, the kind that may cause you to involuntarily grit your teeth.

Cerulean, while technically masterful, is just a fine, pleasant dream to pass the time.