Last year AFFKT – aka Marc Martinez Nadal – released Son of a Thousand Sounds, an album that weaved between a whole host of electronic styles, from Pantha du Prince bell-play to razor-sharp ambience à la the Field. Where Nadal was going to project himself after the album was anyone’s guess; the only thing that was certain was that he could go just about anywhere he wanted to and you would have been right to assume he’d make a fine effort of whatever he did.
Enter ‘Modus Operandi’, a new single take from AFFKT’s upcoming EP of the same name, and the first release since his 2016 album. Nadal arrives with a buoyant beat that oozes just the right amount of strut without drawing too much attention to itself. Once the synth arpeggios start swimming to the surface of the track, the listener is set off on a space-like journey that passes by a billion stars and planets. It’s playful, bubbly, but also dead serious about taking you on a journey. Driving comfortably past seven minutes long, Nadal has plenty to show you. Indeed, the long runtime really allows Nadal to breathe and explore, spreading out cascading neon synth chords against a backdrop of effervescent melodies and chattering drum tracks. ‘Modus Operandi’ aims for the stars and takes you right there.
