The pounding beat of drums provides the first stumbling point. Wisely, this band did not choose to play the game of finding "new" combinations of rhythms in order to anchor its songs, and instead chooses primitive and well-known beats, in part to de-emphasize their importance. This leaves the listener to endure constant loud and basic percussion, something clearly not a problem for techno listeners but more isolating to industrial/synthpop appreciators. While electronic drums stake out a rhytmic grid, synthesizers fill it with patterns that are a cross between the pragmatic simplicity of punk hardcore and the neoclassical elegance of synthpop. Interestingly, VNV Nation choose to not vary synthesizer voices as much as their contemporaries, which gives the instrument a continuous identifiable presence, like that of guitars. The result is stripped down electronic music that loses some of its technological fetish and, like an industrial band, returns to content and structure, reducing the presence of form. (This is similar in many ways to the original movement in punk music to reduce the complexity of guitar wizardry and production fetishism, letting songwriting take a bigger portion of the spotlight.)

On this album, as with previous works, many songs are instrumentals which sound like smart, trance-y techno given an aggression upgrade. The CD is divided into thirds, with the condemnatory "Chrome" opening, the discontent anthem "Entropy" holding down the middle, and finally, "Perpetual," a song about ontological theories addressing ethologic concerns. These pieces anchor the album and give the band some experimental room between them, which is filled with extremely aerobic instrumentals and often maudlin ballads. As such, "Matter + Form" has a mixed character: at its best it is excellent, once one acclimates to the aesthetic, but often it is too emotionally obvious and thus feels as sensationlessly hyperbolic as mainstream lovesongs. This leads to another criticism, which is that, while this band and album have taken great steps beyond the normal conception of existence, there is still a presence of personal drama, the word "I" appearing too many times in songs, which illustrates where in the neoclassical realm, the medieval industrial and black metal bands have a lead, as their focus is holistic and does not draw itself into the ferment of self-identification.

Among the releases from VNV Nation so far, this one is the most proficient: its songs are more compact, densely layering different musical functions where previous albums were almost serial in the development of themes, and its intensity is brighter while being less emotionally indulgent than previous works. There are also experiments in tone and texture. On many songs, the electronic percussion uses live drum samples, and varied sound effects and electroacoustic manipulations can be found throughout. For these reasons, "Matter + Form" is probably the best introduction to VNV Nation yet, and probably their best work.