Semtek “Brujo (Those Votive Beats)” (exclusive)

21 Nov 2013 — Henning Lahmann

As bluntly admitted by the label's operators, for a release on Glasgow's acclaimed broken20, Semtek's upcoming Nagual EP is surprisingly straightforward and, for lack of a more appropriate description, almost clean. Where the imprint's usual output is characterised by drone-infused, noise-indebted refracted techno explorations, Semtek – aka Benjamin Roth, the man behind Don't Be Afraid – largely eschews overly obvious fuzz. Yet don't confuse 'straightforward' with 'simple': the three original tracks on Nagual, a term denoting a "shapeshifting semi-human", not only take up more than 26 minutes of disc space, they also seem to enjoy mocking common and contemporary tech-house tropes by consistently going for the less expected option to advance the arrangement, with results that are just as twisted and surprising as they are deliberately unwieldy.

The title track as well as second piece "Brujo" receive the remix treatment by Debukas and DJ Votive, respectively, and as an addition to the versions to be found on the EP, both producers deliver further variations that will be available via direct sales through the label's bandcamp page. One of the two reworks, aptly named "Brujo (Those Votive Beats)", marks by far the package's fiercest and darkest moment, an uncompromising 4/4 techno banger that any Berlin afterhour DJ will surely be happy to drop as a giveaway now and again. Stream it in full exclusively below.

The Nagual EP is out November 25, get it over here. Highly recommended.