Chromatics + Desire

The captivating Johnny Jewel turns out a cohesive, singular vision throughout the many projects he leads on his Italians Do It Better imprint: smoky, cinematic ’80s-indebted synth-pop, heard on everything from the recent Twin Peaks reboot to the Nicolas Winding Refn-direct cult classic Drive. He shows up here with the two label standouts, Chromatics and Desire. After the success of his universally-lauded 2011 album with the former of the two, Kill For Love, the artist has promised (and failed to deliver) on releasing the band's followup, Dear Tommy. However, we're hoping this show indicates that this year's really the year.