Marcos Ortega's
Lorn project has captured the ears of many on the underground electronic scene with his woozy electro. Here he delivers his fifth LP,
Remnant, a wobbly concoction of resonant synth leads, thudding electro beats, and haunting melodies. Kicking things of is "I Am a Dagger." Its two-minute long mix of burgeoning and creeping ambience brings to mind the enveloping eeriness of
Burial's "Come Down with Us" before launching into "Kold Mirage," which delivers celestial synth melodies sitting atop filtered, fuzzy dub beats. Album highlights elsewhere are "L'appel du Vide" and "Memory Management." The former consists of ethereal harmonies that cushion pitch-shifted synth pads while the latter is a somewhat uplifting track consists of a layered, reverb-laden refrain that's akin to the early work of
Jon Hopkins. There are of course
Lorn's more sinister vibes on the record; "Out of the Frame" is composed of a frantic melody pattern that dips in and out of the mix alongside ghostly vocals as if it's a soundtrack to a tense chase scene in a sci-fi movie.
Remnant is yet another remarkable, cold, and intriguing album from the producer that best represents the producer's knack for evoking emotion through icy cold sound palettes among dubstep-infused percussion. ~ Rob Wacey