- You could say that Objekt painted himself into a corner with his early output. After all, once you've developed a reputation for supplying the kind of jaw-dropping dance floor moments found on "Unglued" or "Cactus," it must be difficult to know where to go next. That may partly explain the Berlin producer's relative quietness this year; his one release, the patient electro roller "Shuttered," while masterfully wrought, felt like a consolidation of past successes rather than a bold step forward.
In "Agnes Demise" TJ Hertz has developed a new and particularly vicious weapon in this ever-escalating arms race with his own discography. In the way that many Objekt tracks chew up familiar signifiers and spit them out in absurd new shapes, it's tempting to see this track as Hertz's response to the recent vogue for industrial techno. For most of its length it's a suspenseful beast, centered on a single bone-crushing thwack. In the breakdown, however, that sound is stretched out into tortured plateaus of noise, writhing and blistering with feedback. Before long the whole thing grinds to an agonising halt before flicking back into holding-pattern mode—Hertz knows when his work is done.
"Fishbone"'s relative straightforwardness comes as something of a relief. Its sleek electro beat is of a piece with "Shuttered," but it's a touch funkier, and a shimmering synth supplies patches of light. As with its predecessor, the devil is in the detail—odd, nasal vocal samples, punishing sub-bass and a particularly lush sci-fi bleeps—and, from unassuming beginnings, once the five minutes are up you'll find yourself locked in its vicelike grip.
TracklistA Agnes Demise
B Fishbone