Leave Luck to Heaven

Pitchfork 7.8/10 Matthew Dear has proven himself one of the more prolific new artists of the year. In 2003 alone, he's released a pair of EPs on Spectral Sound (the more house-oriented arm of Ann Arbor's Ghostly International label), recorded for Richie Hawtin's Plus 8 imprint (as False) and Markus Nikolai's Berlin-based Perlon label (as Jabberjaw), and now finally delivers his debut full-length, Leave Luck to Heaven. It's no wonder that Dear allows his work to be represented by a wide range of labels, from Ghostly's electro-pop, to Plus 8's minimal techno, to Perlon's tech-house-- his music blends elements of each of those genres.

All Music 4.5/5 The album closes out an exceedingly accomplished year for the producer. It also defines microhouse as much as it defies it, all the while carrying the baton for high-caliber, heartfelt techno-pop.