What do you get when you bring together two of Australia's greatest purveyors of mesmerising, darkly curious electronica?
The answer is Brutalist, a new collaboration from Melbourne's Lucianblomkamp and London-via-Sydney's John Hassell, best known as one third of Seekae.
The pair are releasing a new mixtape next month and the first single to be lifted from the release is "Strep."
The track has this strange sense of melody and emotion, although clearly grounded in a futuristic, digital environment. It's unsurprising to learn that it was created almost entirely through online correspondence between Australia and the UK.
The track opens on tinny synths atop a wavy ambient backdrop. A murky bass and off-beat rhythms soon begin to fill the soundscape. It feels uncertain, but not quite anxious. As it progresses, it doesn't build so much as it simply morphs and moves, each synth line a flickering signal, journeying through a pulsing tunnel of sound.
I might be a little bias considering that Lucian and Seekae are two of my favourite Australian electronic acts ever, but damn, this mixtape is going to be special.
Brutalist's mixtape comes out on August 26 via Good Manners. Pre-order it here.
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