steve moore: analog sensitivity

When a synth master like Steve Moore joins forces with the legendary KPM, magic must materialize. And so it does with Analog Sensitivity: cinematic, enigmatic synth scapes to both haunt and heal. New York-based multi-instrumentalist/producer/film composer Steve Moore is probably best known for his synthesizer and bass guitar work as Zombi, together with Anthony Paterra. But he is also part of Miracle and Titan as well as being a prolific solo artist releasing music as Gianni Rossi, Lovelock, and under his own name. Rather than being commissioned by KPM, Analog Sensitivity comes from music Steve was recording sporadically and tinkering with for over three years during the downtime between his film projects. After Jon Tye invited him to play on the Ocean Moon project for KPM, Steve realized that the hallowed library label might be the perfect home for what he had been working on. Finishing production in late 2019 in Albany, NY, he came up with the track sequencing and suddenly, he had an album: Analog Sensitivity. The LP opens with the dystopian electronic minimalism of "Eldborg", its dark synth bass unfolding to ominous synth pads, shadowy sustains, and glistening arpeggios. "At The Edge Of Perception" brings an unsettling retro-future of edgy analog leads and desolate FX. The sound of a robotic core tears through the sparse textures of the enigmatic "Rose Of Charon". A chilling breeze blows through a persistent, hypnotic synth sequence on "Time Freeze". Title track "Analog Sensitivity" is a sparkling transcendental synth scape of melody, drones, and celestial synth. The brooding "Behind The Waterfall" winds down the first side, building subtle strings and a desolate sound beneath its haunting organ. "Mirror Mountain" ushers in side two, its woozy bass and arpeggio unfolding to envelop the muffled, muted echoes of its organic leads. "Syzygy" emerges you in bubbling sequences, airiness, and ambient electric guitar tones. It's followed by the cinematic minimalism of "Pentagram Of Venus" and its trickling FX. The wind swirls through the otherworldly "Of Dust Thou Art" kicking up clouds of unsettling, plodding synth sequences leading to the uneasy atmosphere of "Message From The Beast". Closing track "Urge Surfing" is as cool a climax as you'd hope from something so brilliantly titled, riding along hushed waves of brooding electronics. Mastering by Simon Francis, cut by Pete Norman, pressed in the Netherlands by Record Industry.