As a fan of Apparat, there's a good chance that I'll like most of his releases and this one is no exception. Busy touring most of the globe recently, this man still finds time for regularily producing interesting quality tracks. On "Berlin, Montreal, Tel Aviv", his touring experiences served as a key inspiration and give each track a unique vibe. From the elektro fluff of "Berlin" through the breaks of "Montreal" to the deep uplift of "Tel Aviv", Apparat once again shows why he is one of the most promising artists in the eletronic music today.

Coming off the excellent Duplex release and endless worldwide gigs, Apparat finds time to deliver his 6 track Neo Ouija debut. While I believe these tracks are a couple of years old, the material is by all means very fresh sounding and in-line with Apparat's very musical and melodic direction. Human voice and natural (sounding) instruments complement the digital particles of rhythm, making for a very enjoyable selection of music. If you caught the recent John Peel session featuring this young artist, then you've had the pleasure of hearing some of these cuts already. If you haven't, that's even more reason to check them out. I'd single out Riding as my fav, with the harmonic string melody adding a unique touch to Apparat's already trademark sound.

An extraordinary set of remixes on this one. Thomas Fehlmann (Kompakt, Orb) gives "Schallstorm" a structured dubby feel that continues to ascend with precision. Lusine puts a fresh, broken spin on "Contradiction", while preserving the vibe of the original. Then, as of that weren't enough, the flipside brings two more mixes by none other than Monolake and Anders Ilar. Monolake's take is a little bit of a disappointment, considering the track is "Seinholz", one of my (many) favorites from Dulpex. However, Anders Ilar trully shines on his remake of "Wooden" with his unique sound in full effect, and making this likely my favorite track on the EP. Overall, a superb release; however I would have loved to hear a mix (or two) of "Granular Bastard". Maybe something for Vol. 2?

Apparat's third release shows tons of progress, as well as a shift into new IDM territories. Many tracks feature wind and string instruments, even vocals, worked in with extraordinary success. The opening track "Granular Bastard", which remains in the digital domain is the standout track, but Apparat's new direction and superb production skills are more than promising.