A longtime associate of Four Tet and Hot Chip, as well as the former guitarist for short-lived 90s pop-punk group Symposium, Hagop Tchaparian didnt begin releasing music as a solo artist until 2022. Appearing on Kieran Hebdens Text Records, Bolts blends synths, dance beats, acoustic instruments, and field recordings in a manner that wont sound unfamiliar to Four Tet fans, but Tchaparians music is distinguished by his usage of instruments reflecting his Armenian heritage. For more than a decade, Tchaparian has made private recordings of street musicians and other happenings during his travels to Middle Eastern and Mediterranean nations, and these sounds are deftly edited into his compositions. Beginning the record in downtempo mode, "Timelapse" is a hazy piece grounded by an ear-catching loop of dhol drumming with whistling noises captured in the background. "GL" begins with a drone of horns and synths, switching to big room techno beats on a dime, bolstered by frenetic hand drumming. "Flame" has more delicate pacing, stretching its loops out over nine minutes, alternating between pounding kick drums and more reflective, glowing passages. "Right to Riot" is one of the albums most commanding fusions of ecstatic acoustic loops and moody synths, reaching fever pitch with a brief snatch of a zurna wailing like an alarm. The most successful track on the album is "Round," which suspensefully builds from a blippy microhouse beat, as haunting synth layers levitate. "Ldz" deconstructs samples of fireworks and applause, craftily arranging them into a beat and then a deep, resonating drone. Bolts tries out a lot of different approaches, from front-and-center club tracks to ambient experiments, and while the more exciting, beat-heavy cuts tend to work better, Tchaparians work is undeniably unique and refreshing. ~ Paul Simpson

Rovi