Skip to content
Reviews

Gui Boratto, ‘III’ (Kompakt)

Brazilian producer Gui Boratto, who learned his supple melodies from U.K. progressive house and puts out records on Cologne’s iconic Kompakt label, proves that techno can be a universal language. Boratto’s ear for a crowd-pleasing hook and a steady but invigorating thump has made him a dependable crossover candidate, so it’s refreshing that on his third album he digs deeper into psychoacoustic sound design, ominously repetitive grooves, and contorted chord progressions. Warehouse rave bombast turns into living-room intimacy; the closing track, “This Is Not the End,” perfectly mixes New Order, the Postal Service, and M83.