[Delsin]

Sometimes label moves can seem a little jarring, especially with a serial monogamist like Claro Intelecto. He had an early fling with Ai Records, but soon settled down with Modern Love, becoming one of the label’s leading artists. As Modern Love travel down the rabbit hole of Andy Stott’s gnarled, knackered sounds and Demdike Stare’s library witchcraft, the man born Mark Stewart releases his first proper 12″ in over a year on Delsin. Second Blood contains some slow jams à la Modern Love’s recent missives but slots in nicely with the neo-Detroit sound that Delsin does so well, marking a shift from the warehouse bangers Stewart has perfected over the years, as well as referencing his early releases on Ai (“Percentages” in particular).

The title track chugs along at an opioid pace, with a strange bass line that sounds somewhat like a dial tone pushing things forward. Genuinely emotive strings float off on the horizon, lifting it above the primal id of Stott’s post-apocalyptic scenes into something a bit more hopeful. The record slows down with “Heart,” feeling a bit too disaffected with the world to muster up much more than morose keys, languid bassbin rubs and field recordings, before rallying with the more out-and-out techno of “Voyeurism.” Despite releasing a staggering amount of exceptional tracks over the course of his career, Second Blood feels like a high point for Claro Intelecto — it’s supremely focused while exploring different shades of the same vibe throughout. It’s this cohesion that really separates the good techno records from the great ones, and there’s little doubt as to which camp Second Blood falls into.