s_w_z_k: s/t

Tresor Records are pleased to present S_W_Z_K, the new project from David Brown aka Swayzak. While the name remains identifiable, S_W_Z_K presents a clear departure from his work with James Taylor, who recently left the legendary production duo. Taking cues from the outfit's heavier live material, Brown -- with the sporadic help of long-time collaborator and friend Richard Davis -- steers S_W_Z_K into deep and spacious techno on this eponymous debut album. Before taking different paths, Taylor and Brown had been producing together since 1997. A union that spawned five studio albums, two high-profile DJ comps and a stack of genre-spanning EPs, Swayzak became one of the leading figures of !K7 Records, as well as appearing on labels like Force Tracks, M_nus and of course, their own Swayzak Recordings and 240 Volts. But it's their legacy as a formidable live act that lays the groundwork for Brown's new direction as S_W_Z_K, turning the pair's chaotic, experimental and textural live aesthetic into a recorded signature that's energetic, raw and unrestrained. "The project was to make sonically powerful music that would work in clubs without necessarily making 'club music.' The tracks are very minimal in the sense that no more than 10 sounds were used, giving each track space to breathe." comments Brown. S_W_Z_K is an intelligent dance album with Berlin sensibilities. It balances the more pensive, introverted Warp moments like on "Elsenstr. 171" and "End of the Line Old Boy" with plenty of floor-friendly cuts. From the shimmering Basic Channel-hailing opener "31 Techniques," the album plunges into steelier, hydraulic recesses with "Dimanche Noir" before Artificial Intelligence and the Tresor basement collide in "Neukölln Mon Amour." The remainder of the album continues to reinvent itself, working over a restricted sound pallet and yet culminating in a diverse, rich and intriguing album. S_W_Z_K deftly showcases Brown's 20 years of electronic craftsmanship, with tracks like the morphing "Marianne F" and multi-tiered "The Last Drop" flaunting a particularly inventive approach to sound design. It's a stunning juncture in an already prolific and venerable career, and one Tresor Records look forward to fostering in the future.