Over the last couple of years, Nørbak has carved his place as an eminent figure of Portugal’s growing techno scene.
Over the last couple of years, Nørbak has carved his place as an eminent figure of Portugal’s growing techno scene. After a significant number of releases on such prestigious labels as PoleGroup, Modularz and Semantica, the producer is releasing his highly anticipated debut album, Flesh To Ashes, in January 2021. While listening to the LP, it makes complete sense that it was distributed by Oscar Mulero’s label, Warm Up Recordings. Indeed, tracks like “Land of Sin” feature some of the hypnotic loops that characterize the Spanish artist’s signature sound, further framing Nørbak as an ambassador of the Iberian peninsula’s distinct musical aesthetic.
Fleshes To Ashes is designed as a journey that marks the culmination of its producer’s work and its evolution through time. As such, most of the tracks are hybrid in nature, combining deep and heavy kicks with other-wordly sounds, creating complex arrangements that call to both the physical aspect of dance and the psychological dimension of the listening experience. For instance, “Rune Value” is driven by a steady and powerful beat, while the broader sound design infuses the production with an atmospheric quality. “Deductible Ethics,” on the other hand, crafts an ethereal world through warped sounds that seem distant and fragmented, pulling us deeper into a state of hypnosis.
Beyond defining Nørbak’s unique, cinematic sound, Flesh To Ashes also demonstrates the producer’s skills in terms of delivering strong dancefloor weapons. Nearly every track is fit for a peak-time set, with a driving beat that embodies the most physical aspect of techno. In “Collective Disbelief,” a contagious energy emanates from the deep and rich kick, while “Fleshes To Ashes” brings about an incisiveness in its unstoppable linear progression. However, as dance-oriented as the album is as whole, several tracks stand in sharp contrast to the others. Most obviously, “Intro” and “Camera,” which lead us to and from Nørbak’s immersive musical universe, are virtually beatless and delve into lush ambient sounds.
It is in “The Third Morality” that Nørbak pushes the boundaries of his sound the furthest. The beat is slow and deconstructed, which allows the producer to bring the many other layers of his music to the forefront. While the rest of the LP is dominated by mechanical sounds that fully embrace the technological nature of digital production, “The Third Morality” seems to emulate the organic, through the sonic evocation of natural elements. And this is what makes this debut album so promising: as Nørbak bridges the gap between the mechanic and the organic, between deep techno and cinematic ambient, he proves his ability to push club music towards a bright and ambitious future.
-Theophile Gatte
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