Ø [Phase] - Tunnel Vision Album

When Ashley Burchett sets his mind on releasing a devastating club friendly 12", you can virtually forget about drawing comparisons between him and anyone else. When he nails it, he's immaculate. Kind of like the finest productions by Surgeon, Planetary Assault Systems, Speedy J or James Ruskin, amongst others. He may experiment, he may surprise, he may challenge his fan base, but when this guy decides to drop some true to form techno and hit a home run, there's no need for victory laps or standing ovations. Just shut up and press play. Evidence to support my thesis? Well, we can start with his debut "Module Overload", and continue with some fine Token classics such as "Fragmenta", "Binary Opposition", or even his epochal, one-off release as Epoch, through to the staggering "The Passenger EP" - all timeless examples of puristic techno that exude peerless confidence and superb craftsmanship. His music, being exemplary on both, a technical and artistic level, pertains the type of mainstay quality that enables his productions to rise above current trends and enjoy the kind of replay value a lot of his contemporaries can only wish for. His tracks may not be the hottest club material at any given moment, but they effortlessly impress and command dance podiums now as they did years ago.Mainly devoid of vocals and 'first aid techno kit' effects, Phase stubbornly relies on the quality over quantity rhetoric, and yet again it shows. The title track gains in momentum as the thick low end and jagged percussion surge ever onwards, but it's the disorientating break that really gives this tune its constant edge of your seat feeling, with the intense whirling reminiscing of a merry-go-round ride gone astray. All the while, ground shattering drums rumble, increasing the unsettling tensions set by the erratic synth lines. This is floor filling material, no questions asked, but it's the way in which it constantly moves and eschews the tooly-loopy structure that is breath taking. A voyage onto its own that makes one move. Will set plenty clubs on fire.On the other hand, Internal Conflicts (Acts 1-3) may just be one of his most elaborate efforts to date. Clocking in at ten minutes, it's an acidic odyssey, deploying an effective 303 pattern, initially starting as an invigorating 4x4 fare. Followed by a pretty standard break-down, the drums kick back in with more menace, but it's the track's last third that displays insane complexity. On the heels of yet another break, conga drums are tossed in the mix. Not only that, but at this point, the bubbling acidic techno driven piece we got accustomed to now morphs into off-beat territory, where unexpected rhythms make it hard to predict the music's trajectory. Furthermore, things are brought to a stop with an almost beatless, ambientish passage near the end, completing a demanding track that pays off the patient listeners, due to its multiple and sudden changes of direction.In my opinion, this is the finest he's churned out since 2012's massive "Binary Opposition". I was slightly disappointed with the Chasedown and On The Edge vinyls, which in my ears sounded too generic and trivial for something released by Phase... But that's only me. See, I have to admit, I have huge expectations when placing a new record of his under the needle. From my perspective, these expectations are justified. He has set the ladder for himself extremely high, and records like this one prove he can still go places and take on his own sound in fresh ways. Never would I buy an Ashley Burchett production in order to get satisfied with a mere tool. While his tracks are undeniably effective tools - just check with the scene's biggest names - the greatest achievement of his sound is its multifunctionality: puristic techno no doubt, but at no point dire or stale. It's lively, deadly effective, skillfully produced, meticulously arranged, and I could go on and on. As I stated in my opening sentence, when this guy delivers the goods, a cloudy day turns sunlit. As short as this 12" may be, there's enough to be enjoyed here for months.

Very good review! And very informative. Thanks!

... you need to be working for Resident Advisor writing reviews, jesus man that is quality.