Review Resident Advisor: Can Adam X ever just be Adam X again? In the aftermath of the enormous success of Traversable Wormhole—both in its original, anonymous incarnation and its reissue series on CLR—it seems the answer is no. The Berlin producer's music appears to have been permanently affected by his flirtation with the Berghain-inspired dance floor sounds. With the exception of a collaborative EP with like-minded techno primitives Ancient Methods,... more...

Review Resident Advisor: Can Adam X ever just be Adam X again? In the aftermath of the enormous success of Traversable Wormhole—both in its original, anonymous incarnation and its reissue series on CLR—it seems the answer is no. The Berlin producer's music appears to have been permanently affected by his flirtation with the Berghain-inspired dance floor sounds. With the exception of a collaborative EP with like-minded techno primitives Ancient Methods, Outflow Boundary is Adam X's first "Adam X" release since the opening of the Wormhole, and also his first for Prologue. As such, it carries a bit of baggage, but it does so with utmost style and stride.

It's not as if the man has completely reinvented his style: there are sonic tics that hint back towards his more industrial work, but there are also plenty that seem indebted to Traversable Wormhole. Both tracks are sprawling and reduced, taking their time unfolding themselves in a determined straight line (like much of the Prologue catalogue); and like Traversable Wormhole, they consist of hovering elements that seem to circle around the song's core instead of merely fading in and out of the mix. "Downbursts" starts with the basics, a clicking kick that quickly begins to stir up a dust storm of pinging chords and ominous drones until elements begin to blur. It's messier and more abrasive than any of the Wormhole tracks—that's where the Adam X name comes in—but its comparatively limber functionality seems a far cry from the distorted and static-coated screams of his previous album State of Limbo. The flipside, "Wind Shear Detection" confirms the lingering influence of the Berghain, pairing Klock-style industrial shudders and whooshes with X's own characteristic metallic snares and militant programming. It seems as if through the Wormhole project, Mr. X has rediscovered subtlety: and while he's not about to go all STL on us, it's already proving a good look for him. less