Australian DJ, producer and Bonzai stalwart Audio Noir returns with his latest studio album Artificial Star. This will be the 2nd album from this guy in the space of just over one year, Almost Famous set the bar high and we have no doubt that this time around will be no exceptions. We spoke to Audio Noir to get a taste of what drove him during this album's creation and he spoke about how he wanted to employ a subtle theme of space and philosophy. He simply wrote what he felt and consciously wanted to deliver an accessible album that would appeal across the board whilst maintaining his own artistic desires. He also pointed out that the bass heavy, rich sounding Jazz Noir was his favourite and most challenging track to produce alongside the surreal, prog tech driven Drk Mttr. We have no doubt that this album will resonate among many as it takes us on a deep, dark cosmic journey filled with peaks and troughs that keep the imagination sharp.
We kick off the album with The Dark Place, and the title really does do the track justice as we get drawn into a dark progressive tech cut. Nice big chunky kicks provide the intro alongside sharp hats that cut through the lower frequencies. Sinister sounding spoke vocals telling us about 'the beat, the bass, the dark place' ring out taking us to that dark place. Rising FX litter the sound bringing in a spacey vibe as a meandering bass lingers in the depths. Top notch stuff and the perfect opener.
Up next we are taken further into the cosmic abyss with Travel Tube which intros with a cool breakbeat arrangement that projects a trendy urban theme alongside the spaced out vibes coming off the vocals and FX. A probing bass carries a lot weight here and really gets you hooked on the sound and provides a beautiful contrast with the slicing vocal. Suddenly the track breaks with just a low frequency in play before bursting back into the main groove for the duration, superb stuff.
From London To Moscow intros with a nice chunky kick with a clipped top and a stuttering hat that picks up the tempo. Rising FX takes us through each stage and brings in new layers filled with tight drums that generate a solid rhythm. A straight up four by four groove ensues complete with a driving bass and mysterious vocal. Subtle melodic sequences linger in the background and add a little spice to the sound as it drives on. At the break we are left with that superb bass and those fading melodies as we descend into silence before the powerful kicks return and get us on the move once again. An excellent display of progressive house that will definitely gain favour among many.
Next up we have Drk Mttr with its superb solid groove and tight arrangement that spews out a surreal space-like vibe. On the low end a deep bass reverberates through the sound providing the perfect platform for the more ethereal sounds to develop. A cacophony of beautifully crafted FX line up to blast this track high into the atmosphere and take us all along for the ride. The groove remains solid here and will definitely give the darker sets a boost. On the break is where this track really shines as we are led into a total science fiction soundtrack complete with radio chatter that adds cool textures
