Crate Exploratory: Mike Dehnert's Bricolage EP-Classic Dub Techno For 2011

There’s just something about a song that incorporates reverberated synth sounds, stacked high to the ceiling like a tower of Jenga blocks, that stays near and dear to my heart. On Mike Dehnert’s Bricolage EP, plenty of these sounds are incorporated into a dub-techno template that powers the four tracks it contains. And just like a game of Jenga, many of the sounds we expect to hear are extracted and stripped back from the main body. Yet a delicate balance of what remains stands confident and tall. 

There is an underlying groove across all four tracks on this EP that is far more infectious than pretentious. Although I’m hearing nothing new in Dehnert’s body of work, musically this is more akin to that porterhouse steak I might eat once every two weeks, rather than that mundane glass of water I drink four times a day. It isn’t like some crazy gastronomic culinary delicacy I’ve never tried before (and can hardly afford), yet like the steak, the Bricolage EP is music I can look forward to consuming. I know it won’t let me down. 

“Montage”, “Isolateur” and “Treibholz” are your everyday TR-909 workouts. Seasoned listeners will be able to identify every nuance that is happening as each one progresses: the evolution of the pads and mangled sounds, the muffled vocals, even the undulating basslines that try not to steal too much of the show. (They’re just here to provide the rhythm, mind you). “Picon” delves more into the broken beat category, while happily retaining the dub-drenched aesthetic of the first three tracks. 

In an era where the face of electronic music changes on a dime with little warning to us listeners, it’s nice to be able to spend some time in familiar territory with releases by the likes of Dehnert. Get the Bricolage EP on Beatport today.