UK producer Dave Robertson, who is better known as Reset Robot, takes his bespoke brand of tech-house/techno into the stratosphere on his cosmic debut for Ovum Recordings.
With an unmatched track record of crafting transformative tracks for Adam Beyer’s Truesoul, Sven Väth’s Cocoon, and Anja Schneider’s Mobilee Records — in addition to co-founding Whiteblower Records with Alan Fitzpatrick (with whom he co-helms the Customer project), Rhymos and Con Fraser — Robertson displays his uncanny ability to summon musical nirvana.
Opening track “Bark Orders” is as a lean, mean and subtle tech-house romp. Minimal melodies ebb and flow as the track unhurriedly simmers. The synth-driven “Croquette” sprints out of the gate with a big kick drum, adding shimmering pads over an enthralling nonlinear narrative. Robertson flips the script on “Tincture,” where he cuts to the chase right away on the darkest sounding track, which is my favorite of the three incredible offerings. The fiery cut wields a stirring, ominous groove that’s peppered with a meandering melody and frog-like croaks (that’s right, croaks).
The Bark Orders EP is all killer with no filler. It’s manna for DJs with inclinations toward pitch-dark dance floors and the magic that happens when the lights are turned down low.