Sunglasses Kid’s Internal Affairs turns 16 tracks into an hour-long electronic thriller soundtrack, with synthwave and synthpop at the centre and film score, jazz, prog, fusion and ambient ideas around them. Three interludes, “Breaking News,” “Burying The Past” and “Getting Out,” help give the sequence a plotted feel, while titles such as “Warehouse Shootout,” “Major Heist” and “Witness Protection” point towards its 80s crime-film setting. It’s all instrumental, but the saxophone contributions from Jonny Diggens, Max Cruise and Gary Honor, along with guitars from Erik Halonen, R.J. Ronquillo and Laszlo Buring, keep the palette from becoming a wall of programmed synths.
The London-based Sunglasses Kid has been active since 2013, and this paid release follows the same fictional screen world as the 2022 Night Life EP. Several pieces began as part of the artist’s “P.O.V: It’s the 80s” clips on Instagram and TikTok, so there’s a clear connection between the album’s sleek production and its visual, scene-setting approach. Sunglasses Kid handled production, mixing and mastering, with Davey Oberlin appearing as DJ Johnny Thunder and a reporter. Fans of retro television scores, synthwave, instrumental pop and neon-lit noir should find plenty to settle into here, though the hour-long format and lack of vocals make it more soundtrack album than conventional pop release.
