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There is a gentle, unhurried feel to the new album from the production team of Florian Schirmacher and Helmut Ebritsch. As Hatikvah, the two explore what sound like distant frontiers in contrast to what passes for today's narrowly focused techno scene on Synchronicity. The finely tuned and balanced tracks that comprise the album were made to resonate in the headphones, a taut bundle of flanged beats tinted with cinematic splashes of ambient and thoughtful vocals.

There are also some great musical detours along the way that touch on jazz and soul that are unexpected but add to the overall sophistication of an album that avoids alliances to any particular genre - embracing bits of many. Far from being subtle, the duo cook up a tantalizing album that unfolds and breathes, demanding immediate attention. Synchronicity is the rare techno album that sounds like it was made by seasoned musicians rather than mere studio rats.

It's hard to single out one good individual track on Synchronicity, often the longest ones are the best, like the album's closer "Spent Some Time", unfolding and taking on a life of its own - ending with vocals that implore us to "seek evolution".

The shaded, jazzy nuances of the opening track, "Big Mind", along with stream of consciousness vocals create the musical poetry that is the foundation of the album's non-techno influences. On the other hand, the title track is a straightforward deep house cut, perhaps the only one on here, with hints of Diynamic and Dial to keep the masses at bay.

The quarter hour span of "Unforgettable" is the real gem - shifting chords, lush instrumentation, while keeping tempos at a decent dance floor clip, complete with the existential chorus "I'm just here for today". This is a real song with ace musicianship and one of the album's crowning moments a far cry from the soulless pile of loops disguised as modern techno.

Others like "Zen" would sound at home on Thievery Corporation's Eighteenth Street Lounge label - loungey downtempo with heavy emphasis on dub but without sounding dated or tainted with world music influences. In an interesting sequencing approach, "Zen" is followed by "Modern Times", a solid Berghain number complete with pumping beats and vocals that recall house veterans Dubtribe Sound System. Hatikvah seem equally versed in both the up and downtempo styles and make both cuts sound effortless and free flowing despite the disparity in styles. "Daedalus" is a beatless musical excursion that adds depth to the album and passes by more as a marker of time rather than an actual tune and also sets the stage for the soulful garage feel of "Beneath" right after. "In The Spirit" is the album's lone minimal offering, just to make sure they cover all the bases, and comes complete with vocals to give it some soul.

Synchronicity lives up to its title with all of the elements aligning just right for an album that is full-fledged in terms of raw physical groove and brainy musicality. It's a perfect balance and hopefully a new trend for techno music.

Artist: Hatikvah Title: Synchronicity LP Label: Soma Tracklist 01. Big Mind 02. Synchronicity 03. Unforgettable 04. Zen 05. Modern Times 06. Introduce Me 07. Daedalus 08. Beneath 09. In the Spirit 10. Spend Some Time www.somarecords.com www.hatikvah.de Our Rating: 8,5/10