Following the success of singles ‘Pasión’ and ‘Paradiso’, producer and multi-instrumentalist NOCUI presents his new EP ‘Anomie’, a stunning four-tracker filled with headsy beats and the kind of transcendent sonic moments he has become synonymous with.
A classically trained pianist, Rome native NOCUI brings a sense of true musicianship in his approach to electronic music production. An early love for improvisation permeates his work, expressed in meticulously crafted tracks that combine elements of sound design and orchestration with intricate rhythmic patterns.
The EP’s opening track ‘As Long As It Takes’ comes out the gates strong, setting the tone for the emotive, yearning energy that permeates this EP. Synthy bleeps, off-kilter bends and repetitive vocal stabs take the listener on a cosmic journey through analogue soundscapes with cutting edge flourishes.
‘Paradiso’ follows with a ‘blissful urgency’ attained through driving deep house aesthetics and a supporting cast of oneiric keys and searchingly melancholic strings weaving amongst a diaphanous choir vocal. A track equally at home as the night builds or as the sun rises, delivering hopeful warmth and etheric vibrance to the clubbing experience.
On ‘You’re My Strength’ we hit the ground running with a driving 4/4 beat joined by emotive keys and stirring pads which build to a break-down with echoes of Art Of Noise’s haunting ‘Moments In Love’. The vocal ‘you’re my strength, my desire to move forward, I love you’ appears intermittently throughout and truly encapsulates the brooding romantic energy of the track.
‘Anomie’ closes with ‘Pasión’ where NOCUI showcases his penchant for storytelling across soundscapes and syncopated rhythms. Driving percussion, brooding synths and hypnotic handclaps tease the promise of Mediterranean nights, creating a tension that lures the listener away from the confines of the club and into a state of blissful transcendence.
NOCUI says:
Anomie” comes from the desire to make dance music that is not conditioned by the hedonistic side of clubs. This record wants to break out from this rhetoric and convey a story that simultaneously enriches the mind and the body. From the beginning of its conception, this record was meant to bring listeners on a lucid psychological journey while evoking a fierce desire to dance. The goal was to use sound to transport listeners into the most unexpected club scenarios, and re-contextualise the dancefloor to something deep, intimate, hopeful, angry, and full of wonder… These are all subjective experiences that in this case will be lived in the company of others.