Tokyo-based producer Yoshinori Hayashi has a reputation for a fluid and loose approach to genre. This makes the maximalist collages and sharp sonic turns found on Pulse of Defiance – his second album for Smalltown Supersound – not wholly unexpected. Even so, his eclecticism is a joy to behold. Reflecting the same deftness/daftness that breathes life into DJ Koze’s releases, Pulse of Defiance is underpinned by a sense of playfulness that is something of a hallmark for the Norwegian label.

True to form, nothing on the record stays still for long. The undulating keys of album opener Callapse are subsumed into blissful, percussive jazz. Lead single Touch, sees the ‘pulse of defiance’ of the album’s title seemingly reveal itself as a timeless techno thud. Interludes, like the slowly unravelling Frequency, morph seamlessly into the chopped stabs of Shut Up, before changing direction again, with Hayeshi exploring the emotional potential of piano rave (Gallop) and dub and jungle (I Believe in You) before the album is through. In lesser hands, Pulse of Defiance could have been messy, grating or simply aimless. But Yoshinori Hayashi’s craftsmanship conjures a coherent sound out of the noise.

Adam Corner