To be honest, it has been difficult to write about FaltyDL‘s second full-length record, but not because it disappoints—on the contrary, You Stand Uncertain might be one of the most exciting records to come out this year. The New York resident (a.k.a. Drew Lustman), whose earliest productions were classified as IDM and dubstep, has been expanding his sound effortlessly since the release of his 2009 debut full-length, Love Is a Liability, and nowhere is this sonic widening more evident than on this latest effort.

In more ways than one, Lustman seems to be following in the footsteps of Cornwall’s most famous son, Richard D. James; perhaps one of the only differences is that Lustman eschews James’ tactic of using many aural aliases. For example, a piece like “Lucky Luciano,” with its rapid-fire changes in rhythm and tone, is very much in line with James’ work as The Tuss. The record’s title track, with its Detroit-meets-garage framework, sounds like a long-lost slice from James’ early days or the Analord series, and “It’s All Good” is an IDM offering of moody bass wobblings, washed-out high-frequency samples, and lush notes drawn out to blissful ends. Sure, pieces like the skittery “Brazil” most definitely fall under the rubric of dubstep, but they’re preceded by the distorted funk of “Open Spaces,” and often followed by the Theo Parrish-like slow-motion techno of “Voyager.” What’s more, the record doesn’t feel like a cobbling together of disparate styles—it flows beautifully.

In short, it is rare to find a producer who can craft many types of tracks so consistently well, but with You Stand Uncertain, FaltyDL has cemented himself as such.