Disclosure

Already scoring a trio of Top 20 hits in their native UK, Disclosure have released Settle with a certain degree of swagger. And it's exactly this level of buoyancy that makes the English brothers' debut such a brazen tour-de-force. Assembling a crew of hot-shit up-and-coming collaborators like AlunaGeorge, Jamie Woon and Jessie Ware, Disclosure manage to deliver a 14-track collection that comes off stronger and more eclectic than many of the best DJ mixes. Of course, when it comes to deep house, unbridled confidence is what the listener should expect, but when Disclosure take on the sonic vulnerability of late '70s Hi-NRG ("F for You"), the rubbery unrestraint of '80s electro-funk ("When a Fire Starts to Burn") and the audible warmth of '90s trip-hop ("Help Me Lose My Mind") in under an hour, it's apparent the duo are erudite students of dance music. However, it's the fact that Disclosure make bookish, aurally factual electronica sound so carefree that makes Settle such an artistic success.