All those who have followed Pleasurekraft in recent years have become very aware of their transformation into a bona fide taste-making tour de force in their preferred field of cosmic techno. In early 2018, the transnational duo of Kaveh Soroush and Kalle Ronngardh achieved a career milestone with the release of their debut album, the mystifying — and, at times, eclectic — Friends, Lovers, and Other Constellations. 

In the time since, Pleasurekraft have remained somewhat quiet on the musical front in terms of their own original releases, however, they have continued to advance their musical mission with a slew of releases on their Kraftek imprint from numerous promising talents. Most recently, the label backed rising producer Brennen Grey’s H is for Hercules EP, with the helming duo featuring on one track as collaborators.

Now, as the year draws to a close, Soroush and Ronngardh have enraptured audiences with Welcome to the Universe, marking their first EP since 2017’s Nagelbett. In their new two-track record, Pleasurekraft explore the darkest depths of the cosmos, demonstrating once again their mastery of stirring, extraterrestrial electronic music.

Welcome to the Universe opens with “Primordial,” a veritably umbral techno offering. Built around perpetually-pounding percussive elements, dynamic, occasionally dissonant synth-work, and harrowing vocal samples, the EP’s leading track is as sinister as its haunting artwork might lead listeners to expect. Indubitably, this is one of Pleasurekraft’s most ominous offerings.

“Main Sequence” rounds out the record, and matches the darkness of “Primordial” with a cavernous depth. The unique combination of thunderous, echoing drums and eerily lugubrious melodies which pervade the piece result in chilling, yet ultimately revelrous sensations which are better-suited to score the latest hours of any bacchanalia than a vast majority of releases in the past year.

Indeed, Welcome to the Universe bookends a momentous year for Pleasurekraft in magnificent fashion, and instills great excitement for what lies ahead for the duo in the months to come.

View dates for Pleasurekraft’s ongoing tour below, and purchase tickets here.

Nov 16 | [Sound] Los Angeles, USA
Nov 17 | [Halcyon] San Francisco, USA
Nov 23 | [Bar Americas] Guadalajara, MEXICO
Nov 24 | [Hardpop Pop-up] Monterrey, MEXICO
Nov 28 | [Gewolbe] Cologne, GERMANY
Nov 30 | [Kowalski] Stuttgart, GERMANY
Dec 1 | [Ringlokschuppen] Bielefeld, GERMANY
Dec 7 | [The Room] Luxembourg, LUXEMBOURG
Dec 8 | [Le Diskret] Lyon, FRANCE
Dec 15 | [Grelle Forelle] Vienna, AUSTRIA
Dec 25 | [Club Capital] Helsinki, FINLAND
Dec 31 | [Hotel 82] Valencia, SPAIN

Tags: Main Sequence, Pleasurekraft, Welcome to the Universe

Categories: Music