Underworld

Progressive house and trance prevailed in Canada in the mid- to late '90s, first as part of shadowy underground movements, then later degrading into the mainstream. Certainly the driving, ethereal music once dominating parties and car stereos was overthrown by harder-edged, dirtier electro at the turn of the millennium. Revisiting 1996, when electronic music breezed into Canadian popular culture, UK act Underworld entrusted "Born Slippy" to the charts (the track gaining widespread popularity via a certain Danny Boyle film about heroin use). Undeterred by changing perspectives of the last decade, Barking conveys an Underworld that never lost their edge or the specificity of their sound. Their sixth studio record is richly collaborative, with help from Darren Price, Dubfire and others who expertly fill the gap left by Darren Emerson's exit in 2000. "Moon In Water" features Welsh drum & bass act High Contrast, with sincere synths solidifying lyrical common sense ("As the water manifests the brightness of the moon, the moon manifests the clarity of the water"). Ideal choice for a hit, the anthemic "Always Loved a Film," with techno producers Mark Knight and D. Ramirez, sparkles as a flashback to earlier days.