Pretty excited to find out that Apparat is releasing a new album in the very near future. The album, his first on Mute Records, his new label, does not seem to have a name or a release date as of yet, but we know it’s coming, so that’s good enough for me. It promises more prominent vocals and live instruments, and all of that mixed with Apparat beats is sure to be a winning combo. Apparat sort of holds a special place in my heart, as it was a fateful cd burning of his Walls album from my friend Ulia (I also made it out of the transaction with my first taste of Akron/Family in the form of their beautiful self titled album) that I feel is ultimately responsible for my first true introduction to electronic music, and we all know how that turned out. And even though the new album doesn’t yet have a name or a release date, we know that it has at least one song, as Apparat is giving away “Ash/Black Veil”. I can’t say that I ever in a million years would have guessed this was Apparat if nobody told me, but I’m still totally digging this song, mostly because it’s really pretty. The nearly 6 minute track gives us a taste of what we can expect with prominent piano and various stringed instruments all over the subtlest of beats and it only gets prettier as the song goes on. The blips and bleeps come more front and center as the track goes on, and there’s just a really great buildup that carries through the whole song. Sonic bliss.

Apparat – Ash/Black Veil