Bleep

Since Max Ravitz dropped his last Patricia LP Several Shades Of The Same Colour back in 2017, the project has smartened up considerably - recent Patricia drops have sounded notably cleaner than the lo-fi thud that characterised the early records. However, no Patricia record to date has come off as crisp as Maxyboy, the artist’s first LP for Ghostly International.

Maxyboy utilises the new sonic possibilities opened up by Patricia’s clear mixing. The album leans heavily into IDM and ambient-synth tones, with synths either chirping or sighing depending on the texture of the tunes. Steve Hauschildt and Lorenzo Senni are recalled by the chatty modulars of ‘Julia Set’ while there’s the same air of Lynchian dreaminess that we find in some of Daniel Lopatin’s work to Maxyboy’s beat-free closer ‘Ctenophora’.

Much of the rest of the album works the channels between electro, techno and IDM in a way that harks back to the golden-age of Rephlex Records. Booming kickdrums and busy 303s are offset by some woozily gorgeous synth work on tunes like ‘Dew Point’ and the aptly-named ‘Crushed Velvet’. Even when the tempo ratchets up, as it does on moonlight-braindance number ‘Myokymia’, the effect of Patricia’s production here is as cerebral as it is invigorating.

Patricia’s sensitive electronics sound clean as a whistle on new LP Maxyboy, the producer’s debut release via Ghostly International.