Enigmatic, mask-wearing auteur-songwriter Milo Korbenski returns with a new album titled Sex Angel, through Phantom Limb. This masterfully crafted collection of catchy slacker-dream-pop features irresistible, addictive earworms that reveal deceptively deep songcraft.

Milo Korbenski’s deeply expressive take on lo-fi art-pop indie evokes optimism in an unexpectedly emotional manner. The record's hooks, catchy as hell, and clever lyrical wordplay resonate with the inner soul while moments of boxy, torn-cone distortion and octave-dropped vocals coalesce with the sweetest synth and vocal interplay. The record references a broad range of influences, including Kurt Vile, Helado Negro, Black Sabbath, The xx, The Cocteau Twins, Siouxsie Sioux, Jagwar Ma, and Calvin Johnson, all while retaining a crucially singular energy: Korbenski’s underlying unreality is more haunting than the indie-leaning acts mentioned here, and the blown-out cassette grit lends an intimacy that transcends the prettified sheen of his pop influences.

Incorrigibly prolific, Korbenski wrote Sex Angel in a flurry of activity after the release of last year’s When You Gonna Tell ‘Em The Truth, Aaron? Following the complete scrapping of an earlier version, he has crafted a deft, bizarre, and streamlined record that balances shades of light and dark. It represents a flourishing songwriting confidence and is, of course, uniquely characteristic of Milo Korbenski.