- In January of this year, Dario and Mario Zenker delivered what was, in this reviewer's opinion, one of the best RA podcasts in some time. The brothers from Munich have been at it for nearly a decade, but really hit their stride in the past couple of years, as their sound veered more toward techno—less Vakant and more Frozen Border (a label Dario has appeared on under the name #.4.26.). Their podcast suggested the best was still to come—it was a live set that showcased reams of excellent upcoming productions. Lion In Mars, their latest EP on Tresor, brings together four of those tracks.
The Zenker Brothers sound best when they go off-piste a bit. "Knighthof," the most traditional song here, is an effective bit of atmospheric club techno, but somehow it feels a little stuffy. "The Future Is You" has more character, thanks to a stepping rhythm and a twisted pair of chords that wind in near the end. Both tracks on the B-side use a subaquatic palette, but to different ends: "Davin" is a gently euphoric percussive workout, while "Cosmilian" is halfway between a club track and an ambient sketch, like something from John Beltran's Ten Days of Blue. These two are the most identifiably Zenker Brothers, and they're all the better for it.
Tracklist A1 Knighthof
A2 The Future Is You
B1 Davin
B2 Cosmilian