Porcelain Raft: Permanent Signal

The romantic, blistering opening of Think of the Ocean frames Mauro Remiddi's follow-up to last year's Strange Weekend, further exploring some of that album's sonic touchstones; feathery synths, glacial vocals and jangling guitars wash over the water's edge and make their way tentatively to land. Cluster mingles jingling percussion, brass, and guitars that seem to sing, and Night Birds is an epic, lifted by Remiddi's vocal. It Ain't Over pits furious percussion against beatific harmonies, and I Lost Connection stops the record in its tracks – it's a moving, piano-led piece with shades of Ben Folds Five and Angelo Badalamenti. Remiddi's influences range from The Cure to nature's awe-inspiring ability to change everything (Hurricane Sandy inspired On The Way Out). His music is mysterious and contrarian; this is a dreamy, searching delight of a record. porcelainraft.com

Download: Warehouse, The Way Out, Night Birds