- Lean, oddball techno from a distinctive artist.
- "Gotta be said... pretty crazy (and awesome) that one of the most forward thinking labels in techno right now is run by one of the most commercially successful artists," tweeted Shifted a couple weeks ago. He was talking about the new PTU 12-inch on Nina Kraviz's label трип, but you could apply a similar logic to Kraviz's own music: isn't it cool that one of the biggest techno artists in the world makes bangers this weird? Take "Dream Machine," the opening track on stranno stranno. neobjatno, her first solo EP of 2019. Peppering its 122-BPM roll are sink gurgles, sheets of noise and Kraviz's unintelligible coos. The pace and feel recall some of her best early work, though the vibe now is moodier, more techno. The track climaxes with a steamy declaration—"I think I'm falling for you"—before organ-like synths colour the home stretch. It's a wicked warm-up record, perfect for sharpening a party's focus.
"I Want You," which comes paired with a splashy video, is modern Kraviz: 135-BPM drums, catchy-as-hell vocal snippets, insanely danceable synth melody. It's techno, sleek and hypnotic, yet also bright and full of beans, the Russian DJ in a nutshell. "Stranno Neobjatno" is faster and darker, the kind of tunnelling bomb that will send shivers up the spine of any dance floor. Spooky synth flickers tickle a bassy groove, while Kraviz purrs "stranno stranno neobjatno." Written in the original Russian, the phrase looks like this: странно странно необъятно. The English translation is "strange strange immensely," a fitting title for this impressive EP.
Tracklist01. Dream Machine
02. I Want You
03. Stranno Neobjatno