Over the last few years it would appear that a sign has been erected over the entrance to the gates of electronica that reads, “If you’re not dubstep, you can fuck off”. But as the genre makes in-roads to the public consciousness, the further it dilutes from the groundbreaking sound that a short while ago seemed so vital. More and more chancers are leaping upon the bandwagon, jarring it from the tracks and onto a collision course with mediocrity. How long before Jamie Oliver’s Dubstep Urban Cook-a-Long airs on Channel 4, bruv? Fortunately the second album from Brighton’s Ital Tek sets its sights on pulling away from the dubstep pack, but is its new destination any more interesting?

Midnight Colour does a lot of things right. It’s a moody futuristic record steeped in atmosphere; one that could soundtrack the last days of humanity in a post-apocalyptic wasteland pursued by cyborg warriors. If this sounds like the description of a Sega Mega-Drive game, that’s because the bulk of the album could well be lifted from one of those 16-bit cartridges.

On standout tracks like ‘Satellite’ (which is so good it could have been an outtake from Polygon Window) the haunting and melodic combine perfectly. ‘Subgiant’ and ‘Strangelove VIP’ also doth their caps to Richard D James with clever programming and creative-vision merging to craft thoughtful structures head and shoulders above the cookie cutter dubstep crowd.

It’s unfortunate that those gems are set amongst others that are in desperate need of more polish. Things can get extremely samey, often making it hard to tell where one track ends and another starts. At multiple junctures it feels like an idea has been stretched too thin, outstaying its welcome after repeat appearances. There are times when it’s easy to disconnect from the listening experience altogether, as everything fades into background music – that is until a great track drops in and reconnects you with the record. Thankfully the tender vocals of Anneka are on hand to close the album, leaving a pleasant taste in the mouth and encouraging return visits.

In the days of easy to assemble playlists this can be trimmed into a pretty special “EP length” body of work. But as an album there’s simply too much filler. Ital Tek is without question a gifted producer; he just needs a little more quality control to ascend to the next rung of the electronic ladder.