Muscle And Mind

Madrid-born techno veteran Oscar Mulero has reliably churned out dozens of excellent hard, minimal dance 12"s since the '90s, making him the Spanish equivalent of Jeff Mills, Regis, or Surgeon. Since he began releasing full-lengths in 2011, Mulero has branched out and explored more downtempo and experimental styles, creating atmospheric IDM reminiscent of Arovane and Proem. The 2015 full-length Muscle and Mind turns its focus inward, reflecting on the relationship between the brain and the body, with scientific track titles like "Involuntary Response" and "Mechanical Function." The album has its share of pounding tracks like "Dualistic Concept" and "Mentally Induced Action," but the more abstract, Skam-like pieces such as "201 Element" and "Muscle and Mind" are equally as stunning, if not more so. Eerie, reflective ambient track "Mental Causation" even resembles a beatless Boards of Canada. The album's CD edition includes the Dualistic Concept EP (which doesn't include the track of the same name) as a second disc, featuring non-album track "Stimulated Reflex," a stripped-down edit of "Mechanical Function," and a trio of remixes, including an excellent one by the stupendously named SHXCXCHCXSH. ~ Paul Simpson|