The new black

When I was in Berlin recently, I noticed a doublepack in a black gatefold sleeve in the new releases section in Hardwax. It piqued my curiosity, so I grabbed it for a listen. Continuing this theme, the inlays were also black and there was no information about the artist or the label. I asked one of the guys behind the counter about the release. Apparently, it was the latest in the Pom Pom series -  the 32nd release  so far - an anonymous techno project, which is believed to be the work of one of the guys who works in the Space Hall record store in Berlin. I have since had a listen to some of the other releases online and while they're pretty good, this doublepack is the best (of what I've heard) of the series so far. 'A1' is based on a heavy, surging bass and spooky, spacey synths,  'A2' has an off-beat and is more DJ-friendly, yet the same eerie textures are prevalent. It sounds like the author is influenced by early German electronic music and has spent time checking out industrial music -  something that's audible on the layered 'B1', where the kick is muffled, only half-heard and 'B2', which consists of droning, atmospheric sound scapes. 'B3' sees Pom Pom get his groove back on, a tracky affair that builds gently and gradually, while 'C1' could be his/her Sahko tribute, consisting of subsonic blips and bleeps and rumbling 808s. 'C2' has what is being called a 'Berghain' sound, a combination of primal bass rumblings and layered, dark textures and 'D2' follows this quasi-grungy direction. However, the real suprises occur on 'D1' and 'D3', the former being a playful Bell-Akufen-style minimal house workout, replete with vocal sample, while the latter has a disco groove -  albeit one that's caked in a layer of black grime. It goes to show that if you seek, you can still stumble upon some surprises...