Albums
April: 18 albums you need to hear this month
Thundercat, Talaboman, Kingdom and more
Acid Pauli 'BLD' (Ouïe)
Martin Gretschmann’s second album as Acid Pauli threatens to combust into fiery life at any moment, but never does. This is no criticism; indeed, it’s entirely deliberate. His rhythms eschew the propulsive qualities of the kick drum, leaving behind a kind of ghostly ambient techno and minimalist house variant. That’s not to say that ‘BLD’ is just some genteel, beatless entity: carried along by discreet tribal toms and stabbing synth samples, ‘Jorge’ is an exercise in fluttering, burgeoning intensity and ‘Baris’ is haunted by a meandering, low-register bass hum as it transports you to a rainforest of trickling gamelan tropes. On ‘Majid’, meanwhile, Gretschmann works sub-Saharan blues into eerie house with chilling effect. Stephen Worthy
8/10
