Boutique London imprint Stuga Musik returns with this double dose of dancefloor moodiness from Brazilian producer Apoena. It’s a worthy follow up to Och’s epic “Stops Out” 12”, which was released to launch the fledgling Autoreply offshoot and drew plaudits from house music cognoscenti ala Âme and Gerd Janson. Hailing from Porto Alegre, capital of the Rio Grande Do Sul state in extreme south of Brazil, Apoena shows a knack for combining the deep sounds of house and techno with a Latin flair for rhythm and percussion.
“Nuvem” kicks things off with shuffling snares riding along tension filled chords. “Bosque Em Flor” comes as a digital exclusive and maintains the opening track’s Sunday BBQ vibe, with enough attention placed to the build ups and drops to maintain a rolling groove. But it’s the title track “Falando Serio” that takes the cake for us here, with warm chords and claps forming the backdrop to a killer drum pattern. It’s worth putting on repeat a few times to let it sink in: a hypnotising, subtle beast.
Review: Aaron Coultate
