[Fachwerk]

With recognition and success come new challenges, something Mike Dehnert is surely aware of by now. The Berlin producer’s output has been prolific over the past year — eight EPs in total — and the danger he now faces is to ensure his classic techno-influenced sound does not end up providing ever-diminishing returns. This is something Dehnert has already addressed with his MD2 side-project, which most recently alternated between grimy stepping rhythms and deeper, less abrasive techno than has been his wont. However, Dehnert is still very much focused on the Basic Channel/Tresor legacy, and on Spreepool, manages to tease and tweak new interpretations out of that general formula.

“Biface” ticks a lot of Dehnert boxes: Granite-hard, slightly distorted beats? Check. Firing, insistent percussion? Present and correct. Ominous, billowing chord sequences? You bet. However, the key difference is the vocal sample. At first almost inaudible due to the chords, its haunting tones slowly and steadily insinuate themselves into the center of the arrangement. There is a similar element at play on “Chardon.” Again, Dehnert’s rhythmic elements are all there, and the building razor-sharp hi-hats and hammering kick sound even more merciless than usual. However, the track is even more notable because accompanying a similarly haunting vocal are eerie hooks that sound like the bastard son of the central riff on Dr. Motte’s classic, “Der Klang der Familie.” As Dehnert has shown time and again, sometimes you need to take a few steps back to go forward.