Dawn Of Midi - 8/10

You'll swear sequencers are at work as well as acoustic instruments on this debut from Brooklyn's Dawn Of Midi. But the hypnotising grooves that Aakaash Israni, Amino Belyamani and Qasim Naqvi construct on 'Dysnomia' are made with upright bass, drums and piano. Dawn Of Midi's closest musical relatives may be classical and jazz, but like Brandt Brauer Frick they eschew synthetic trickery. Belymani shoves his hand into the guts of his piano to muffle and clip sounds, while Israni's intricate, breakneck bass fretwork produces a robotic groove and Naqvi's drums beat out relentless, complex tempos. The juddering rhythm and repetitive phrasings behind 'Nix', for example, mimic deepest techno. It's immersive, overwhelming, and an even bigger treat performed live.