- Max Cooper's dreamscape techno might seem to some like the banal illegitimate crossbreeding of James Holden and Gui Boratto, but the British producer actually has more in common with fellow Traum acts such as Extrawelt, Fairmont and Applescal. Whereas the latter's productions are infused with IDM and sometimes even d&b traces, Cooper's "Chaotisch," "Harmonisch," and "Stochastisch," released over the past two years, are abstract yet elegiac pieces of moody, trance-inducing techno.
On this iTunes-exclusive EP, Cooper's productions are viscerally captivating, constantly morphing in front of us like aural kaleidoscopes. "Stochastisch" is especially absorbing, as it alternates between waves of distorted white noise and remote moments where a mischievous bassline and abstract vocal snippets wander around an empty space. But, overall, the compressed edits proposed here feel frustratingly laconic: shortening an eight-minute long odyssey to a three-minute teaser doesn't really render justice to Cooper's craft. One should stick, then, to the more engrossing originals.
The release's real surprise comes from the exclusive, ambient rework of "The End of Reason," a truly sublime beatless tour de force that recalls Philip Glass, Aphex Twin's most serene moments and even Henryk Gorecki's Symphony No. 3. Compared to the three other radio-friendly tracks that precede it, it just draws attention even more to their length deficiency and only insists on how Cooper's emotive electronica needs time to beatifically settle in.
Tracklist01. Harmonisch Serie (Radio Edit)
02. Stochastisch Serie (Radio Edit)
03. Chaotisch Serie (Radio Edit)
04. The End of Reason (Ambient Rework)