Albums
July: 18 albums you need to hear this month
Laurel Halo, J Hus, Robert Hood and more
Nick Höppner 'Work' (Ostgut Ton)
The two years since his debut LP have clearly served Berlin mainstay Nick Höppner well. While that first album, ‘Folk’, was far from a bog-standard affair, it sometimes felt different for different’s sake. But follow-up ‘Work’ is much more the sound of a producer who has mastered all his machines and can speak fluidly through them. He shows a new breadth and depth of sound that takes in skittish, celestial house, gooey, mid-tempo minimal and loose broken beat, betraying the producer’s fondness for UK garage and bass music. There are even avant-pop moments of translucent synth joy next to darker no wave hymns, all of which help make ‘Work’ much more than your average electronic album. Kristan J Caryl
8/10
