Tomora - Come Closer

On paper, a full-length collaborative record from Tom Rowlands and AURORA doesn't make too much sense. A British big-beat pioneer meets Norway's most feral art-pop mystic? They've joined forces before, but TOMORA's debut LP 'COME CLOSER' feels less a tidy crossover and more a headlong collision. Fortunately, it manages to build its identity on that friction.

The vocal-only intro, 'PLEASE', sets an eerie tone before fully handing AURORA the reins to run free with the title track, a 5-minute escapade established from barely a handful of repeated words. Instinctual and animalistic, it swells from fragile intimacy into explosive release. Unfiltered and occasionally excessive, it's undeniably hers - a moment of pure, impulsive abandon.

'A BOY LIKE YOU' then swings the pendulum hard the other way. Sleek, electronic, and increasingly muscular as it unfolds, it's the unmistakable footprint of Rowlands stepping forward - circuitry humming, a groove locking in, every element sharpened to a cool, synthetic edge.

Then comes 'RING THE ALARM', where a harmonious yet obviously disruptive balance finally clicks into place. Blistering and high-energy, it's the album's true centrepiece and obvious lead single choice - the peak moment where neither artist overly dominates, but both elevate each other. This is TOMORA in perfect unison.

The rest of 'COME CLOSER' feels like a bid to recapture that magic. Sometimes it succeeds; 'SOMEWHERE ELSE' finds the sweet spot again, AURORA's controlled verses and feral bursts riding Rowlands' pulsating production in thrilling tandem. Closer 'IN A MINUTE' ends on a relentless rush, proof that when momentum and chemistry align, it's electrifying.

Elsewhere, though, ambition tips into indulgence. The eight-minute 'I DRINK THE LIGHT' stretches a strong core idea too thin with jarring passages of vocal sampling, while slower cuts like 'SIDE BY SIDE' drift on by without quite landing a significant blow. The risk-taking is absolutely part of the appeal.

Overstimulating, eerie, weird and wild, 'COME CLOSER' is at its best when its two creators move in step. When they don't, it can feel unbalanced - but when they do, they're capable of something genuinely arresting.