- Lorenz Brunner hasn't moved far beyond the ideas on his most recent Recondite records, Placid and Think Twice. Phalanx / Warg draws heavily on the sparse arrangements and modest tempos of the former and the poignant, reverb-soaked synths of the latter. The two tracks here have plenty in common, too: "Warg" begins immediately where "Phalanx"'s desolate tech house leaves off, with the same gnarled bass frequencies lurking under its 4/4 thuds.
Such blatant connections make "Phalanx" come off like an elongated intro for the more fleshed-out B-side. At least "Warg" is a decent take on Brunner's brooding dance music, with trembling trance melodies flooding the greyscale atmosphere and simplistic beat. There's a lot of interesting motion from the synths as they jump, twist and hide in the empty space around the drums. But, to be sure, little about Phalanx / Warg hasn't been done to death—not least by Brunner by himself—which depletes any lingering power from the formula. After the resounding impact Hotflush and Recondite made together with 2014's Caldera, these tracks are more like drops in a very large pond.