Jens Zimmermann - C30 EP

A C30
B Tek One Boy
C 5.0 Original
D Yeah Tomzzz

On this four track EP, Jens Zimmermann goes for the jugular. Barely a chink of light is allowed to permeate the inky black atmosphere that shrouds the 40 minutes of minimal techno on offer, and the result is a single-minded screwed-up EP. Make no mistake, this is skewed and sinister dance music. It's also the latest in a series of forceful reminders that the overpowering grey sparsity of the best '00s minimal hasn't been abandoned by all.

"C30" starts things off at an edgy frantic pace. A nagging one note riff is splattered against a monolithic wall of bass for 12 minutes. Percussion drips through the track like water falling in a cave, while the beat is almost idiotic in its insistence. Zimmermann's sound sculpting is often way above the usual standard, and this time the track has the intensity to match. It's hard to think of a tune in 2008 that demands to be used in a big club so vociferously. Next up is "Tek One Boy," a deeper track that's a bit less twisted. Zimmermann layers vocodered "Easy Lee" style vocals over a rolling bassline, creating a psychedelic monotony that's a little like early GummiHz releases on Mobilee.

"5.0" ramps things back up again, with a deep sub bass and little else, apart from a few cymbal shards and droning pitched down vocals. It sounds like an all too familiar description but Zimmermann's heavy duty production makes it work. The ideas aren't mindblowing, but the execution is enough. That said, for "Yeah Tomzzz" Zimmermann flexes his muscles a bit and creates a sleepy psychedelic haze, an 11-minute lullaby for those who listen to techno to get them to sleep at night. It's the least club friendly of the four tracks—it sounds like a series of unplanned robotic malfunctions which have somehow come to be used as music—with erratic dribbles of melody and weak fading lights bouncing back and forth. It may also be the most striking track on this release.

Zimmermann has fashioned four raw techno pieces here without a single concession to the overground. While the ideas aren't necessarily singular, apart from "Yeah Tomzzz," the brute force of the sound design carries him through. Listen with patience, and be prepared to find yourself gulping with shock...www.residentadvisor.net