The duet “Not That Big” stands out as a hell of an angst-anthem for broken relationships long down the shitter. Diament is joined by Imogen Heap for this hook-filled burner. Sure to be a top single, “Not That Big” is cyclical but has all the spray and smoke of a heated spat among two love-scorched combatants. Brilliant.

Fittingly, Immie leaves and “Knock Me Out” drops in with an insistent synth twist. The perfect follow-up track, this one suggests that Diament is more than ready to move on from the fragments of his past liaison: “I catch your eye / In the rear view mirror / With one hand on your chin / Stroking your cheek with your finger / How I wish you were mine.”

The improbably mesmeric “Crime” isn’t just some faint allegory. Diament “wants real gold” in his hands and he’s not afraid to “shut your mouth” to get it. This perilously hip number pulsates with desperation, calling back some of Dave Gahan’s greater moments. And “Battleships” has just the right amount of haze and warmth.

“Meet me at the aftershow/I’ll be waiting with the keys to my hotel,” Diament begins on “Little White Lie.” Encouraging an affair with lines like “yes, I’m married but I’ve left my wife at home” is alluring stuff as Temposhark lets the song spiral out of control and one lie piles on top of another. This significant storytelling ability is what sets Diament and Busby on another level.

“Invisible Ink” is a slow ambient track that flows agreeably into the album’s closer, “Winter’s Coming.” The swirling keyboards and building orchestral movements on the latter deliver a great finale and a sign of things to come.

So there it is. Temposhark marks a rare instance of a band living up to its hype, delivering an album so filled with stories and power-pop melodies that it begs the repeat button seconds after the closing notes.

And for all of the crankiness of the hype machine, the target with this one was on the nail. Diament and Busby are here to stay and should plant their feet resolutely in the shaky ground of fumbling electro-pop acts. They’re sharp. They’re slick. They’re taut. They’re even sexy. They’re Temposhark.