Polluted clouds hang in dark skies like blackened organs and a rumble in the distance tells us the end of the world is coming. The Storm EP, which is not only a cracking illustration of the 303 as storyteller but a masterclass in sustained dread, is what it sounds like.
Opener Calendar Maya by Sandro Galli (128 BPM) sets the scene, its title recalling the long-standing Mesomerican prediction that it’s curtains for mankind at the end of this year, on 21st December, to be precise. Booming, cavernous sounds and fragments of white noise add to the sense of impending doom. If Zenith by Jeff Mills had a psychotic twin, then here it is.
Church Tank by Minimum Syndicat, meanwhile, radiates the menace of a bare swinging lightbulb in an empty basement and sounds like a lost track from Plastikman’s Sheet Music crossed with the nightmarish musique concrete at the beginning of Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Acidulant’s Sound (134 BPM) maps outlands of aural paranoia. Two acid lines pulse and tumble, while on the fringes lurk strange, hypnotic noises, perfect for inducing a psychotic break should you need one in a hurry.
Walter One’s Bubble (150 BPM): what to say? How about that it’s a trance number that does absolutely nothing for me? Okay, and moving on, Erik Al-Yen’s Fantasy (130 BPM) is a serviceable thumper with a lovely grease smudge of a kick and a 303 that bubbles like lava streams, while playing us out, Scam’s Amethyst (128 BPM) broods like a cuckold with a loaded gun, simmering acid and snatches of speech appearing from within the dark mist. You like dark techno, sir? You like the acid? You’ll love this. In fact, I’d say that with the exception of the Walter One track, which I’m sure is fine, just not my kind of fine, you liking this applies right across the board. This is a great EP, tough enough to muscle in on your mix, textured enough for pure listening, and comes highly recommended. Check it out on Soundcloud here.
A Chronicle of Rabbits 