Ellen Allien Nost

BPitch Control

erlin fixture and BPitch Control boss Ellen Allien drops her dark and brooding, dystopian seventh album on her own burgeoning imprint. Arriving over three years since her last LP LISm, and a full seven years since her last club-focused record Dust, Nost feels like a love letter to her city’s perpetually evolving underground club culture. Mixing her beloved techno with industrial, bass and pulsating rave, Allien pulls together a diverse soundscape that remains razor-sharp and focused. The atmosphere is dark, sinister and intense, creating an almost otherworldly, subterranean landscape that uses unusual nooks and crannies to explore intriguing spatial sounds to the full. Analogue basslines combine with whirling synths, jacking breaks, squelchy acid blobs, futuristic beeps and eerie pads to create Allien’s exhilarating sound palette. Her own distinctive vocals wash over the top in a wave sensuality. Underneath, a muscly bottom-end full of gargling bass and potent rhythms drives the record forward with purpose and momentum. Wildly spinning grooves twist, turn and oscillate to build a hypnotic, heads-down vibe. Her most confident and expressive work to date, Nost is yet another firm reminder of the talents that have made Ellen Allien such an enduring figure in this fast-moving and inventive subculture. Tom Jones

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