- What if Hiroshi Yoshimura made a trip-hop record?
- The recordings of Nicola Ratti reward patience. Solo and with his duo Bellows, Ratti's varied catalogue explores drones, slow-bloom melodics and modular clicks and cuts. His forthcoming album, Shinkai, feels more immediate based off this first single, "Suiso." For the new LP, the Italian artist teamed up with Japanese underground MC MA, whose grizzled and psychedelic delivery (listen to those ad libs) is a surprisingly perfect pair with Ratti's gentle synth rhythms. Some metal clangs off in the distance, a quiet hi-hat occasionally intersperses, but there are no traditional drums. Rather, "Suiso" glides along on gentle chords and arps, sounding like what might happen if Hiroshi Yoshimura made a trip-hop beat.