So you know I have to talk about the fish right? Neon Tetra are a freshwater fish indigenous to southeastern Columbia and certainly well known to any home aquarium enthusiast. These timid little fish have a metallic blue-green stripe running the length of their body that's so bright it almost makes them look like Tron fish. This fact has nothing to do with the artist (aka Liam Brennand) who lives in the Canadian prairie city of Regina, Saskatchewan, but the Tron equivalent (combined with laid-back Canadian electronics) says a lot. Neon Tetra's debut full-length entitled "Home" really does have a warm, comforting, familiar feel to it.

1. Hidden Secret
2. Mooses And Ducks
3. Soya
4. A Tree In The Middle of Nowehere
5. A Disbelief In Believing
6. Keeping A Memory Within
7. On The Way There
8. rcid
9. Underneath My Heart
10. Lost Part 1 And 2

Noise Factory has recently started a series of online-only releases and Neon Tetra's album is one of them. Online-only releases seem to be the theme for Neon Tetra, seeing as Liam's debut EP "Grain Elevator" was released on netlabel Phoniq in 2005. It was the success of that EP that brought his work to the attention of Noise Factory.

As is the case with nearly all music inspired by the sounds of idm, I can't help but mention similarities to bands like Boards Of Canada, Bola and the like. While the sounds on "Home" maintain the required hazy, toylike plinks, ticks and melodies of the genre, the structures of the music are actually not as experimental as many others, and that is what I like about this album. That's what gives it that feeling of home, even though it's not your own.

Among my own favorites here is "On The Way There", which has a mellow hip-hop inspired percussion and nicely unexpected bridges that cause the music to wind up and down like some battery-powered music machine that keeps running low on juice, but pulls itself back before completely shutting down. Added to that are lush string melodies and deep backdrop of simple bass, acoustic guitar loops and synth keys.

"A Tree In The Middle of Nowhere" also sits among my favorites on this release. It's the fat, round bass line I like here, coupled with computerized breakbeats and scintillating synth key sequences that contrast brightly with the muddiness of the bass tones.

For fans of anything remotely idm, Glitch or whatever you want to call it, this is definitely worth checking out. So curl up in a comfy chair (with or without accompaniment), press play and fade into your illuminated aquarium full of irridescent little Tron-fish. You may just find Neon Tetra causes your mind to lay down and relax for a little while.

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