Artist: Rico Puestel
Title: Obi Thine Xi (LP)
Label: Exhibition
Cat. #: XBITLP01
Format: Vinyl & Digital
Release Date: 24th September 2021

Rico Puestel’s fantasy concept album ‘OBI THINE XI’ has been four years in the making and lands on his Exhibition label this September and is a multi-layered techno exploration that tells holistic stories of space and time.

Rico Puestel has had an adventurous career that started with his first DJ gig, aged 13. His music has come on labels like Get Physical, Cocoon Recordings and DirtyBird sub-label Mothership with high profile support from big names like Adam Beyer and Richie Hawtin. The man himself is a pianist, drummer, guitarist and Zappa lover with more than 40 releases to his name and DJ dates that have taken him worldwide. This new album was started in 2017, and various tracks have been road-tested since.

The fantasy concept of OBI THINE XI comes from a wondrous holistic place and explores our perception of the present. On the one side of SPACE, the plot is based on the idea of an exhibition walkthrough and represents the different musical mindsets of Puestel. On the other side of TIME, there’s a 12 “-exclusive mini-album within the album itself that pays tribute to vinyl with four tracks at the end of each side, adding fresh takes on the album’s main theme

This most accomplished record opens with the glistening electronics and cosmic synth ambiance of ‘Promenade (The Cosmos Gave It. Prophecies Agog And Clear)’ then ‘Obi Xi’ is an epic 11-minute-plus techno workout with caustic drums and textural synths designed to drown you in sound. ‘DED2TFREF99&LVBREFOP125DIR#35’ is another high-intensity track with big cantering drums and tense synth patterns, while ‘Voluptuous Antics Enter The Hemisphere’ keeps you on edge with its star-gazing pads and unrelenting synth-heavy techno pressure.

Elsewhere there are mind-melting excursions like ‘Modest Exhibition’ and ‘DED2UUREFG00&AOBREFATSW93DIR#26’ with their loopy synth lines and unsettling melodies ramping up the pressure. The peak time ‘Laps’ is a maximal and muscular track awash with tense synths, and ‘Thine (The Cosmos Takes It. Looking Back In Rapture)’ is a more paired back tune with slick minimal drum programming and astral synth work that comes back from the future. ‘DED2?REF?98&PJREFA91DIR#1’ closes out this high-grade album with powerful drums and supersized cosmic synth work that never lets up.

The two layers of this excellent album add up a merger of different musical ideas and offer a new definition of techno.

Tracklist

1. Promenade (The Cosmos Gave It. Prophecies Agog And Clear.)
2. Obi Xi
3. DED2TFREF99&LVBREFOP125DIR#35
4. Voluptuous Antics Enter The Hemisphere
5. Ritualist
6. DED2UUREFG00&AOBREFATSW93DIR#26
7. Modest
8. ID (feat. Tom Wax)
9. DED2UUREFC99&AOBREFATSW93DIR#8
10. LAPS
11. Thine (The Cosmos Takes It. Looking Back In Rapture.)
12. DED2?REF?98&PJREFA91DIR#17