- Matt O'Brien isn't a flashy producer. He's not even a particularly distinctive producer—at least, not in the sense of having a readily recognizable signature. It's a long way from the parched euphoria of "Serotone" to the head-over-heels tumble of "Into the Red," which sounds a little like The Knife covering Underground Resistance. But that absence of overt stylistic tics could also be called versatility, and he gets plenty of range out of his machine-centric approach—the closest thing to a hallmark you can find in his sound.
"Bloom" begins demurely, with crisp, skipping hi-hats and shakers over a muted, two-note sub bass. Thomas Melchior's desiccated funk will likely come to mind. The song's title is evident in soft pads that unfurl like morning glories—pretty, but also tough, they've got a way of digging in and holding on. O'Brien takes a risk with the breakdown, letting a single string tone fade out into nearly seven seconds of silence. (DJs beware.) But the payoff is worth it, with ethereal haze turning back into a trim, percussive refrain you can feel deep in your bones.
Where "Bloom" is airy, "Without Warning" is almost suffocating. You can feel the kick drum like a lump in your throat; murky chords, beating three against two, leave plenty of space around the beat but let in little light. When the filters open, all hell breaks loose, as minor-key riffs dial up memories of rave at its most white-knuckled. This will surely sound epic in a space like Berghain, but it never tips into bunker-techno cliché.
Tracklist A1 Bloom
B1 Without Warning