voices from the lake: live at maxxi

After their respective releases on Spectrum Spools, Italian techno masterminds Donato Dozzy (Sintetizzatrice) and Neel (Phobos) return as the duo Voices from the Lake with Live at MAXXI on the motherlabel Editions Mego. A marvelous, organic live set of hypnotic, ambient techno that proves the outstanding and elegant craftsmanship of the pair's renowned sonic sculpture work. As expected, they stay true to their polyphonic topography of liquid scapes, with aquatic sceneries embedded in soaking dense atmospheres, gently gyrating the listener into a trance. Sometimes soft echoes of sirenic voices are heard -- the only remnants of human traces in these spaces that have suspended time, where smooth silky textures are channeled into fractal structures that induce a state of transcendence. The haptic quality of their sound adds up to a sonic matrix provoked by gentle glides and dynamic beat patterns of an almost tribalistic quality. Dunked in a bath of dark fluid, sometimes washed away at the shores of kosmische, Voices from the Lake's tunes seduce the listener into a condition of haziness, culminating in a cover of Paolo Conte's "Max," a dazzling sample of sweet, dreamy melancholia. With this release Voices from the Lake succeed again in strengthening their position as supremely refined ambient techno producers. All music written and produced by Donato Scaramuzzi and Giuseppe Tillieci, except "Max," written by Paolo Conte. Guitar overdubs and arrangements on "Max" by Brando Lupi. Mastered by Giuseppe Tillieci at Enisslab Studio in Rome. Recorded at MAXXI in Rome on October 25th, 2014, during the Open Museum Open City exhibition. Photography and cover design by Koto Hirai.