This “Physarum” LP began after moving through drum and bass and hip-hop influences as an initial spark. From there, hardware setups and dub techno loops were exchanged back and forth, gradually taking form, shifting, evolving, and revealing new insights.
Since 2024, Divide & Elias have been actively developing the album. The concept, however, started forming months earlier, rooted in research around Physarum. These organisms aren’t true fungi but amoebas with a unique life cycle. The most well-known species, Physarum polycephalum, is widely studied in biology, computer science, and robotics.
One of its most intriguing traits is its ability to solve complex problems, finding optimal pathways in a way that mirrors certain algorithms used in transportation networks. This idea resonates deeply with the album’s sonic framework: an exploration of self-sufficient systems, where mechanical and computer-driven music align in patterns designed for a purpose, here, shaping sound and structure.
Elias, beyond electronic music, often navigates through field recordings, capturing spaces that feel both natural and undefined, “non-places”, and subtle textures blending into the background. Even when not explicitly present, that atmosphere, that intention lingers.
Divide, on the other hand, brings a highly technical and exploratory approach. His unorthodox methods push frequencies in dense, evolving ways. The result is an album that feels both electrical and melancholic, where Divide’s grit collides with Elias’s bucolic dub techno.
Fragmented and repetitive, the waves roll in fully playable for deep techno settings, adaptable to proper slots and stages. The album moves through a vast dimensional scale that is solid, spacious, evoking an apocalyptic tone, and reminiscent of certain club and festival landscapes.
With remixes from Alexander Kowalski, Jonas Kopp (label owner), and Oisel, we get access to different angles of the same world—a space worth exploring and getting lost in.
-Francisco Barahona
Check out Dirty Epic music recommendations here.
Listen to our podcasts here.
Find out more about our Events here.
Listen to our review picks here.
