Roosevelt - Embrace (LP) - Clear Vinyl

Roosevelt’s fourth album, Embrace, landed on 22 September 2023, and it feels like the moment Marius Lauber fully steps into the shimmering world he’s been building since his self-titled debut. He’s always been a meticulous producer and multi-instrumentalist, pulling threads from disco, synth pop and Balearic house, but Embrace has a confidence that makes the grooves hit harder and the melodies linger longer. It’s the sound of an artist who knows exactly how to pace a dancefloor, yet still writes songs you want to hum on the tram home.

The singles set the tone. Ordinary Love arrived first and still works as a perfect gateway, a sleek, sunlit glide with crisp guitar chimes and a bassline that seems to tug the whole track forward. Luna taps the same vein but leans dreamier, with synths that flicker like city lights and a vocal that keeps its cool while everything around it sparkles. Paralyzed ups the drama, the sort of neon-tinted anthem that would have slotted nicely between New Order and early 2000s French touch on a late-night radio show. These aren’t just playlist bait. They’re proper anchors in a record designed as a full arc, and hearing them in context strengthens their pull.

Lauber produces and plays with the care of a collector who knows where every scuff on a favourite 12-inch came from. You can hear that hands-on approach in the way the drums stay tight and tactile, and in the way the synth lines are layered for lift rather than clutter. He’s long been the kind of studio craftsman who tracks bass, guitar, keys and percussion himself, and Embrace shows off that one-man-band precision without feeling airless. The title track blooms patiently, letting a simple chord pattern gather steam until the chorus opens like a window, and it’s the restraint that sells it. Nothing is overcooked, nothing is rushed.

What makes the record stick is how Roosevelt writes for real rooms. On stage he brings a full band and turns these sleek productions into living, breathing dance music, and you can hear him planning for that. Many tracks leave pockets for live drums to punch through or guitar lines to spark fresh momentum. On headphones it’s crisp and detailed. In a club, the low end does the heavy lifting. If you’ve ever caught him in Sydney or at a Melbourne record store in-store and then chased down Roosevelt vinyl after the show, you’ll know the buzz these songs can kick up.

Embrace also works as a quiet history lesson, not in a nerdy way but through feel. There’s a bit of Italo shimmer here, a touch of yacht-pop suaveness there, plus the warm churn of analogue-style synths that nod to the Juno school of sound without getting stuck in retro cosplay. Lauber has always cited the pull of the dancefloor as a guiding light, and the album honours that with tracks that never lose sight of the chorus. Even the more reflective moments have a pulse, the kind that makes time slip while you’re flipping through crates and wondering if you should buy Roosevelt records online or stick to the thrill of the hunt.

As a front-to-back listen, the sequencing is spot on. The opening stretch coaxes you in with bright tempos and open skylines, the middle cools just enough to let texture and harmony take the spotlight, and the last act finds second wind with another run of singles-ready hooks. You can drop the needle anywhere and get a hit of that glossy Roosevelt rush, but the payoff is strongest when you let the record unfold. If you’re a stickler for format, the Embrace vinyl pressing suits the music. There’s room for the bass to breathe and for those guitar echoes to sit in a proper stereo field. It’s the ideal way to file this beside other Roosevelt albums on vinyl and hear the evolution from Polydans to here.

For anyone who came to Roosevelt through a remix or a festival set, Embrace is the studio document that best captures why he’s such a reliable mood-lifter. It’s romantic without being syrupy, stylish without preening, and engineered to last beyond the first sugar hit. If you’re crate-digging for vinyl records Australia wide, keep an eye out for Embrace vinyl. It’s the kind of record that turns a living room into a small, friendly dancefloor, and makes you feel like the night still has a few good surprises left.