7/10

On his latest collection 'Pitch Darkness', Toronto electro-pop artist Adam Platek, working as Missing Pet, turns the feeling of modern overload into the central anxiety of a five-track EP about connection, desire and the fear that something better might always be just one swipe away.

The premise of the release is immediately recognisable. We're surrounded by options: products, people, versions of ourselves, possible futures. But here, he explores what happens when the same logic that drives consumer culture begins shaping relationships, encouraging us to compare, evaluate and replace rather than commit.

Musically, 'Pitch Darkness' mirrors this tension through nostalgic synths, darkwave textures and intimate vocal arrangements. The production is heavily digital, but the songs focus on deeply human questions; like loneliness, uncertainty, longing and the difficulty of knowing when something is worth choosing.

Highlight 'Plastik Love' is the clearest example of this approach. Built around bright, synthetic tones, the song examines romance through the language of convenience and consumption. The line "Let's just bundle and save, ourselves today" is both funny and bleak, reducing intimacy to the kind of efficiency language usually reserved for subscriptions and package deals.

The title 'Pitch Darkness' could suggest something frightening and unknowable, but the darkness here isn't emptiness so much as excess. There are simply too many paths, too many possibilities, and too much information to ever feel completely certain in anything.

But ultimately, Missing Pet leaves that question wide open to interpretation. Maybe fulfilment doesn't come from discovering the perfect person, place or version of yourself. Maybe it comes from deciding that something imperfect is still worth holding onto.

And in an age built around moving on in search of the better choice, 'Pitch Darkness' makes staying put feel unexpectedly radical.