- Techno's coupling with EBM this year reached a peak that could almost be called trendy. But some artists have been touting EBM their entire careers, including Mannequin's Alessandro Adriani. Others, like Lucy, have not. Adriani's signing to Stroboscopic Artefacts feels like a modish move, but like its best records, Enter The Fire is esoteric techno in line with Stroboscopic Artefacts and Lucy's own ideals.
Like the label he runs, Adriani's productions cut through time and genres, mashing up the old with the new to become "the music of now," as he told me earlier in the year. Enter The Fire captures the Italian at a particularly introspective moment, conveyed most potently on "Astronomy," which utilises airy elements and minutiae details. The grungy EBM version of "Rituals" sits at the other end of the scale. It's heavy, dark and will appeal to Adriani's vintage-leaning fans. "He Who Harnesses The Soul" nestles somewhere in between as a piece of tough, high-octane techno that makes modern use of a dusty sound pallet. The original "Rituals" is a haunted 808 workout that exemplifies why this is such a Stroboscopic record.
TracklistA1 He Who Harnesses The Soul
A2 Rituals (707 EBM Version)
B1 Rituals (808 Original Version)
B2 Astronomy