Couch

Warm analogue sounds propel this German group through a beautiful landscape where human impulse battles reigning electronic sounds, and where small battalions of post-rock are ambushed by the complexities of prog's penchant for time signatures that include a seven. But for all its noodly complexity, Fantasy is a remarkably engaging listen, full of Tortoise-esque melody, rarely sliding down the slippery slope into abstractness for its own sake. It's got a propulsive energy that reveals this is music for feeling and dancing, not too much thinking, unlike many of Couch's instrumental contemporaries.