Having delivered two outstanding EPs and a landmark triple compilation, Portugal’s Pluie/Noir now returns with its first full-length album. Assigned with the enviable task is enigmatic German producer The Marx Trukker, who has thus far kept us on our toes with a string of high-quality EPs on a handful of respected independent imprints. With a natural affinity for experimental soundscapes that challenge dancefloors, Pluie/Noir offers the perfect platform for him to really express himself. As much a palette of textures as it is a dance-focused collection of tracks, Couldn’t See Too Clear For Edges is a kaleidoscopic and utterly transfixing listen all the way through. The very first track, “Alongside ashortside” (A1) is infused with the sort of jazzy, impulsive flavours that are part of the album – and the label’s – DNA. But the tempos ebb and flow, at times withdrawing all intensity (“The Gin Bay Hoss Ballad” (A2)), before cascading into tightly compressed microhouse rhythms (“A Kind Shaped Mind” (A3)) and other more expansive 4x4 examinations: “Couldn’t See Too Clear for Edges (Two Movements)” (B1); “As Rivers Stand” (C1). Regardless of the occasionally dramatic shifts, the album never once loses its focus. “Minor Belongings” (C3) is arguably the album’s finest creation in terms of a true artistic indulgence. Dreamy and deeply absorbing, it feeds into the album’s powerful finale, “Blaue Drift” (D1), which is one of the more aggressive works on show here.