Slow-change beat patterns, gentle tone mutation, and jabs of static form the majority of this minimal techno album, with clinical song titling (e.g., the back-to-back “Ascari_Wet_Condition” and “AscariDry_Condition”) and the occasional vocal fragment accentuation.  Despite the presence of those grunts, gasps, and detached phonemes (blown up to a full and much-repeated verse in “I’m a Part of It”), the music feels too hard-set in its programming to communicate much in the way of a human element, and while the songs pull out some slick grooves, they also feel deeply (and self-consciously) stiff. 

The rhythms hardly ever break loose into full fluidity for more than half a minute or so, always leading to an interjected broken beat between bars or a gurgled moment of electronic overload to disrupt the momentum.  The programming is far too elaborate for that interference to be unintentional, but even recognizing the artsy dissatisfaction with uncompromised beat cycles, the music seems at odds with itself.  The technical skills on display are highly admirable, and taken on a moment-to-moment scale, there’s a lot to savor.  But as a larger musical experience, it feels more asymptotic than parabolic, coming close to but never quite reaching a satisfying completion.