Review: Alexander Kowalski, a fixture in European techno during the early part of the millennium, continues his comeback with this killer four-track release on Andr? Kronert's Odd Even. The title track is a driving, dubbed out techno track that resounds to rich chords and niggling percussion. On "Perception", the German producer uses a similar approach with dubbed out chords, but on this occasion ups the tempo and makes the percussion sharper. "Current 101" meanwhile is more stripped back, with a warbling acid line unfolding over a stripped back rhythm and dramatic stabs. Demonstrating that he is indeed back with a bang, the release also features a tough, tribal take on the title track by ROD.
Review: German producer Alexander Kowalski released his debut album, Echoes, ten years ago. Unlike most productions from that time, it has aged exceptionally well. The deep, dubby groove of "Oxygen" comes across like a cleaner, polished interpretation of Modern Love releases, while the ghoulish broken beats of "Patterns Of Hope" gives Blackest Ever Black's output a run for its money. Kowalski was always a master of the bass-heavy techno grooves and there is no shortage here, with the surging chords and dramatic strings of "Ratio" and "Hearing Is Believing" impressing. But it's the evergreen nature of these productions that is most remarkable and the driving "Debut" or the tracky "Sequential" are as powerful as any contemporary techno expression.
