Ben Frost

Aurora (Mute)
15/20

If you find the dark, swirling, tribal atmospherics of Fuck Buttons just that little bit too twee, then glug deeply from Ben Frost’s metallic goblet. This is not an album to make friends with; no surprise, given that previous releases have sounded like a slow-motion, dystopian, robotic mugging. This is a man, lest we forget, who last year composed an opera based on Iain Banks’ seminal celebration of darkness and debasement The Wasp Factory. But grit your teeth, because there’s a sinister darkness at play that can single-handedly destroy your blissful end-of-party early morning glow if it accidentally arrives on your iPod shuffle at an inopportune moment.

Snaking into life with a shuffle and an electronic wail, Aurora showcases a typically brutal aesthetic. But there’s actually a (relatively) melodic lilt to lolloping scorchers like Nolan. In fact, compared to 2009’s ghoulish By The Throat, which came layered in wolf howls and other assorted musique concrète, this is positively chirpy stuff. The abrasive but euphoric Secant, for example, suggests the star-gazing invoked by the album’s title, and even the more introverted moments are punctuated by synthetic bursts or electronic pulses. Ben Frost is respected by the best in the business: Brian Eno has anointed him, the Boomkat oddballs adore him. And if you’ve not yet let him into your life, you should – because this is rich and rewarding electronic shamanism.

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@ethermachines

Words: Adam Corner