It should come as no surprise that Novelist's horizons have expanded so dramatically since the days of "Take Time" and his one-time crew The Square. Even "Take Time" was an experiment of sorts, but his latest offering, the Quantum Leap, is a dramatic departure from is previous output, perhaps even more so than the '80s soul of "Stay With Me".

Much of the new six-tracker continues that thread of melancholic synth pop — "Freedom" is particularly rich in new wave moodiness — but he also hints at even more new directions. There's a touch of Stingray-esque electro on "The Sapphires", closer "Billionaire Boys" has just a hint of grime and trap in its lurching cadence, and midway gem "We Are One" would work very well in a techno set.

With each new release, Novelist's trajectory gets harder and harder to predict. At this point, we'd be tempted to say nothing would surprise us, but we'll no doubt end up eating those words.