LP5

by 
AlbumMar 22 / 201910 songs, 44m 25s
Ambient Pop Electronic
Popular

Apparat’s Sascha Ring got his start in the early 2000s fusing Berlin techno with glitchy new-school IDM, but it didn’t take long before an even more important element entered the mix: bleeding-heart emo, misty-eyed and proud. On his first solo album in six years, Ring steps away from the widescreen drama of Moderat, his collaboration with Modeselektor, and gives free rein to his most sensitive inclinations. After *Krieg und Frieden*’s orchestral focus, *LP5* returns to an electronic palette of layered synths and crunchy breakbeat mutations, crosscut with sparing use of more organic sounds: “Dawan” suggests a drum \'n\' bass remix of The Cure, while the closing “In Gravitas” is a weighty slab of cinematic bass throb. (At the other end of the spectrum, the gorgeous “Eq\_Break” could almost double as ambient chamber music.) But the focus throughout remains on Ring’s agile and expressive falsetto, his synths\' low-end growl echoing the finely detailed grain of his voice. It’s a rare display of vulnerability and a moving demonstration of electronic music at its most personal.

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8 / 10

Sascha Ring presents an amorphous, irresistible statement with LP5

After Moderat announced their indefinite hiatus in 2017, Sascha Ring went back to his solo career as Apparat.

While LP5 can feel sluggish at times, Sascha Ring’s knack for constructing textured sonic architecture is still a draw.

8 / 10

Since his early work with Ellen Allien in 2006, it seems that Apparat has defined his craft through collaboration. After releasing three alb...

7.0 / 10

Stepping away from his Moderat collaboration with fellow Germans Modeselektor, Sascha Ring returns after six years with a new album under his Apparat guise.

7 / 10

Apparat is the brainchild of Sascha Ring. Ring is also one-third of Moderat, a collaboration with members of Modeselektor