The very first moments of grad_u’s remix of Arnhem based producer Ohrwert‘s ‘Blavus’ signify the kind of emotional sincerity that only dub techno can produce. What ensues is a ten minute subterranean epic akin to a journey to the centre of the Earth.

Taken from the forthcoming EP on Lithuanian label Greyscale, which houses two originals from Ohrwert alongside another remix from XDB, this offering from the label’s head honcho is the standout track – but all four pack a mighty punch.

Here, the skittering dance of the hi-hats add a spectral swing to the track’s otherwise relentless march. Deep textures, stabs and atmospherics drift in and out of the mix, an exercise in entrancement expertly executed.

A couple of minutes in, a glimmer of light appears in the shape of a faint, distant chord – at first suggesting a divergence into brighter environs. But after a few further minutes, the very same chord persists unyieldingly, hauntingly, anonymously in the background – like an antagonist menacingly holding down the same three keys of a dusty piano – metamorphosing into something altogether more sinister.

Ohrwert – Fidelis / Blavus EP is out on Greyscale on Dec 19th.

Comments