- Mowar has put out some excellent deep club techno records by Roberto Bosco and Aubrey, but on Paper Cut its owner Franco Cangelli proves that he's no production slouch either. Cangelli's production touch is as lithe and understated as his DJing—check his Hybridize blog for some sets—with the title track unfolding in an intelligent, assured manner. Heavy drums give way to evocative synths, but before the arrangement sounds too one-dimensional it breaks into a sultry chord sequence, then progresses further with yelping 303 undercurrents.
"When They Come" features the same deft production touches, but here Cangelli sounds like he's attempting a high-tech tribute to DBX or a soft-focus, slowed down take on early Landstrumm. The jacking, abstract rhythm, though pared back, features a flurry of metallic riffs, but also hints at a moodiness that prevailed on previous Mowar records, especially Bosco's "Log In Exact."
Speaking of moodiness, is Miles Whittaker, AKA MLZ and one-half of Pendle Coven and Demdike Stare, UK techno's new moody man? His remake of "Paper Cut" oozes menace and darkness, from the tonal bass intro through the subsonic acid blips and raw drums right through to the panning outro, the aural equivalent of a hanged man's final, tortured death rattle. Like Cangelli, MLZ's remix shows just how deep some paper cuts can go.
Tracklist A1 Paper Cut
A2 When They Come
B Paper Cut (MLZ's Infected Mix)