Album: Delphic, Acolyte (Polydor)

Delphic are the band most hotly tipped to break through in 2010, despite having made little impression with last year's singles, "Counterpoint" and "This Momentary", both of which are included on this debut.

They've spoken of being keenly aware of their Mancunian musical heritage, but they're in danger of being weighed down by it, their brand of indie-aware stadium-techno bearing too close a resemblance to New Order, in particular. Time and again their lyrics speak of their desire for the new and original – "wanting meaning, wanting more than the same things", "give me something I can believe in", "let's do something real", etc, but, ultimately, as they seem to accept in the opener "Clarion Call", they end up going "back into the past". The track is typical of Delphic's approach: mirror-reverb keyboards fluttering in minimalist manner, given a hefty jolt of energy by prominent, Hooky-esque bass. Occasionally, a burst of guitar will arrive late on to hoist a track to its climax, but the endlessly cycling keyboards dominate pieces like "Doubt", "Counterpoint", "Halcyon" and "Acolyte", all of which bulge with a loved-up, hands-in-the-air ebullience that brings to mind such departed dancefloor drivers as Orbital and The Beloved.

Download this Clarion Call; This Momentary; Acolyte