Preserved Instincts maintain their intermittent schedule of Chasing Voices transmissions with Awoken By Tears, a wonderfully presented welcome addition to the mysterious label's canon of releases. The usual Preserved Instinct traits are maintained here; a one sided 12" with little extra information housed in a sumptuous sleeve depicting some rather haunting imagery from centuries gone by. The last Chasing Voices record was a real favourite in the Juno office with "Valley Of The Dry Bones" sounding like a perfect warehouse moment set in ever thickening concrete. "Awoken By Tears" proves to be as memorable and equally resistant to the notions of beat matching. Swirling mists of laser guided synths slowly emerge and form a hypnotic pattern that teases your full attention before a rough jack hammering drum joins the fray. This signals the emergence of an ever growing crescendo of cacophonous rhythms and thick bass stabs that threaten to explode under pressure of their sheer intensity before out of nowhere the elements recede and all that's left is your heart in your mouth.

Skudge, Marcel Heese, Joe Drive