Acceptance by Oscar Mulero
IDM from a dark Techno perspective
Opening with a voice recording and some stabbing arpeggios borrowed from S U R V I V E, it doesn't take long to realise this isn't your usual Oscar Mulero club fare. Primarily celebrated for his dark and uncompromising Techno shapes, the Spanish producer's gone all IDM on us with (by comparison) a much lighter and roomier six track EP. And while shadows of his dishevelled rhythms remain there's a retrospective edge that will please electronic music fans of a certain age. Listen to Crux, as the Hyponik team say, hints of Dubstep and negative space
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Elsewhere Depth In Clarity takes a ghostly synthesiser line and adds a filtered metallic percussion not unlike classic Autechre while textured ambience on the title track gives way to gentle melody, laid bare, beautifully lo-fi. Edges Of Mortality is closest to his previous low-BPM experimental output where complex drum programming combines with subtle notes stretching across the stereo field. Things end on a downtempo note with exhaling sombre strings and filtered piano chords. Sure, he's paddled in these waters before with releases like Biosfera from 2013 but Acceptance carries a definite gravitas that raises the standard.
- Rating: 8/10
- Listens: 15
- Highlight: Depth In Clarity
- Label: Semantica
- Release Date: 18th Jan 2018
Keep your eyes peeled for Mulero's next album Perfect Peace, due out on March 16th on Semantica.