With the 2022 reissues of the rare releases Mother Is the Milky Way and Microtronics, Vols. 1-2, Broadcast filled some of the gaps in their discography but also raised a question: What else remained in their vault? The answer came in the form of Spell Blanket: Collected Demos 2006-2009 and Distant Call: Collected Demos 2000-2006, a pair of 2024 collections that dug deep into the pioneering electronic pop group's archive of works in progress. Gathering the songs James Cargill and Trish Keenan were working on for their fifth album prior to Keenan's untimely death in 2011, Spell Blanket is an unvarnished glimpse into their creative process. The tracks differ widely in their completion and complexity: One of the rawest pieces, "The Song Before the Song Comes Out"'s circular melody takes shape as Keenan goes for a walk; by contrast, "Follow the Light" is all crystalline restraint. The constantly changing sonics create an appealing patchwork of atmospheres that are more expressive than polished studio recordings as they span the Grouper-esque distortion and echo of "March of the Fleas," the watery reverb of "Tunnel View," and the mind-expanding choral clarity of "Greater Than Joy." There's nearly as much variety in the sounds Broadcast explore on Spell Blanket. Echoes of Tender Buttons' minimalist pop resurface on the breezy heartbreak of "The Games You Play" and "Hairpin Memories" revisits Broadcast and the Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age's pagan folk, but "Hip Bone to Hip Bone"'s slinky melody evokes the retro-futuristic elegance of The Noise Made by People and "Roses Red" makes Haha Sound's spiky psych-rock even more insistent with synths that suggest both feedback and pennywhistles. Hearing all the possibilities coursing through Spell Blanket is a sizeable part of its charm, but the way it brings listeners closer to Cargill and Keenan's music is what makes it sublime. Hymnal pieces like "Join in Together" and "I Am the Bridge" hint at how many of the finest moments emphasize the humanity within Broadcast's songs. There's a fullness to Keenan's lyrics that brings out the empathy of her writing as well as its mystery and beauty, whether she combines the emotions and intellect with "Petal Alphabet"'s "love cerebral hugs" or lets the dualities of powerful feelings wash over her on "I Want to Be Fine" ("I wanna be fine/I wanna be crying/I don't wanna be fine"). Though Keenan's familiar imagery -- clocks, tears, colors -- abounds, so does familial imagery, and the ambivalence lurking in the bewitching psych-folk of "Mother Plays Games," "Infant Girl," and "Fatherly Veil" makes for fascinating listening. Most endearing of all is "Colour in the Numbers," the kind of winsome, cryptic song-puzzle that Broadcast's admirers and imitators have never been able to recreate. Being able to hear any previously unreleased Broadcast music is a thrill, but discovering the raw brilliance of the music on Spell Blanket is a true privilege. ~ Heather Phares