SydneyGothic.com review of Glass: The Crystalline Effect – Glass – Black Flames/Crash Frequency [2CD] It's hard not to tag Melbourne down as the city for polished Goth electronica. This is proven again, with the release of The Crystalline Effect's rewarding double release, Glass. Like the releases' title, it's a combination of different elements and the final product is shear, clear and cold. Peter Crane's dry pattering breakbeats draw dreamy train tracks on “Why Do I Hate Myself” as Elenor Rayner's cool vocals slip over them. Futurepop styled synth strings build around this but there's no trace of industrial machismo or ebm sentiment – the whole track is transparent and honest – what good alternative electronic music can be when you don't let a genre pin it down. The darkness and introspection conveyed by the notes seems to come from inside – it's not put on. The title track lends some beautiful, layered vocals to the vocoder, but tastefully and with style. One of the most striking things about the EP is that, even though Raynor and Crane have some experience with prominent electro and Goth bands, this is The Crystalline Effect's first release. “10k” offers the most danceable cut from the album – an anthem with harder beats and eccentric synths framing hooky, straight vocals. “Gabriel” is really the jewel piece in the album – it's a down tempo track where Elenor's vocal strength and beauty is employed a lot more than the dispassion of other tracks. It addresses the listener with soft sadness, and throws acoustic guitar and strings into the blend. The remix disc offers interesting reworking as well as value – with other Crash Frequency bands like Tankt, Angel Theory, Stark and AngelSpit and label mates Skoyz it pulls tracks in twelve different directions that of themselves, offer promise to how TCE might develop. Glass is industrial cooled down, intelligently written and produced with taste and a sense of holding back. While it would be nice to see the music stretched in a harder, faster direction, or conversely a warmer, ambient one the duo's talent is apparent. Lie back and listen or dance. -James Ryan. -SydneyGothic.com