Northern Cold is an emerging talent from Seattle (USA), and his new Onyx EP is something of a hard techno masterpiece.
The four tracks on the release have the dance floor destroying energy known to make hard techno swing like a wrecking ball, but it also has powerful melodies that create peaks and troughs of emotion.
Hard techno is having a major resurgence right now, but it’s fair to say that some of it is a bit mindless, and often favours dance floor functionality over musicianship. This release is laced with musicianship, as each track has powerful melodies, which move with subtle changes in notation, and not just the sweep of a filter.
Each track unfolds with a beginning, middle, and end, rather than starting hard and finishing hard, with just a few short drops providing changes in energy.
In his bio, Northern Cold makes it clear that he is influenced by trance, and that’s easy to hear within the melodies and musicianship of his music.
“Setting the Fires” and “Exposure” are the first two tracks, and they each layer melodic elements over industrial drums.
Track three, “Flux” is a collaboration with IN_DUAL, and it’s led by an acid line that creates a dark and intense vibe.
“Dead Winter (Outro Mix)” starts hard and builds to an atmospheric outro, which does exactly what the title suggests, and it’s a great way to end a DJ set.
Although these tracks are definitely made with a dance floor in mind, they have enough melody and emotion to be played in other settings.
The release is out now on Northern Cold’s record label EONS, and you can buy a copy HERE.
