Debt

After exploring what he dubbed “neurotic funk” on his ARIA-nominated 2022 debut album *Boy*, Melbourne artist and producer Harvey Sutherland locks into the intersection of microhouse and disco on his tight-knit follow-up. Shades of early Daft Punk and Mouse On Mars inform some of these ticklish instrumental workouts, reinforcing the smart yet fun dance-music mechanics that have seen Sutherland graduate from an in-demand DJ to a more multifaceted creative mind. That said, he does still make some splashy forays into the club, recruiting The Presets’ Julian Hamilton for dreamy singing on “Body Language” and Florida electronic hip-hop duo They Hate Change on “Running in Place.” “Nobody Like U” rides stuttered vocal hooks to classic house bliss, and “Remember” taps American indie pop artist Vicky Farewell for a soft comedown over what Sutherland describes as a lovers-rock-inspired beat. Each track feels tidy and self-contained, but they also flow beautifully in succession—like artfully constructed scenes in a film from a painstaking auteur. And while Sutherland says the album title nods to the increasing difficulty of making a living with music today, *Debt* feels more hopeful than fraught.