Seven Breaths

After several years on the down low, following his seminal '90s acid work as Barada, Bryan Zentz returns to techno's A-list, this time under his own name. But keeping things on the DL doesn't mean that Zentz has been resting. Rather, he's released a steady stream of high quality techno tracks, including the breathtaking "Bushido." Seven Breaths opens with a dubbed-out version of this standout track that demonstrates a new sound for Zentz, one that utilizes the Jamaican rhythms and sounds favored by many of techno's more home-oriented producers. But Zentz's particular take on dub is extremely melodic and cleanly produced, signifying a break from the usual gritty techno-dub best exemplified by Basic Channel. However, only three tracks on this album follow this promising new sound. "Troublesome Dub" features Neptunes superstar Chad Hugo on sax (although you'd be hard pressed to identify his presence from the brief horn interludes.) The rest of the album's cuts are more common hard techno fare that sound custom-built for Zentz's label boss, Carl Cox. Hopefully, Zentz will continue to explore the new sounds found here, although he's proven himself more than capable of coming with heavy-hitting techno if he so chooses. ~ Joshua Glazer|