PLACID ANGLES - Canada

John Beltran, a leading figure of the American techno-ambient scene, returns in 2026 to one of the monikers that made him famous after quite some time away: Placid Angles. Born in Michigan in 1969, Beltran began his career releasing records for Carl Craig's label back in the Nineties, before becoming a point of reference for many producers and sound designers of the generation right after his own. His foresight, his ear for other people's talent, but also the respect that younger artists hold for him, have allowed him to enrich "Canada", the album marking his comeback, with a series of successful collaborations. Above all stands out the feature from Sophia Stel, an emerging singer-songwriter from Vancouver (Canada, fittingly) whom we've covered on the occasion of her recent work. Sophia wrote the lyrics and lent her distinctive voice (with strong Ethel Cain inflections) to "I Want What I Want", one of the album's best tracks. Leeds-based tech-house producer Tom VR lent a hand in crafting the vigorous "Tides Alternate", while Bristol's Yushh adds her own touch to "Wildfire".

The project came together during a trip Beltran took to Canada, while he was already working on these songs. The country's vast landscapes influenced the writing to such an extent that the producer couldn't help but title the album after the nation itself. The ambient character of the opener "Sainte Anne", which unfolds over placid guitar arpeggios, the evocative pace of "Reminds Me Of The Rain" and the closing "Sweet Morning Dream" showcase hypnotic, relaxing, beatless melodies, somewhere between lounge and new age. But beyond these three compositions, it's rhythm that dominates the remaining eight tracks, starting with the long, sweeping title track, already released as the first single last November.

The syncopated deep house of "Sun" (with flutes to the fore), the dusted-off dubstep of "Hero", the joyous breakbeats of "We Cry With You", which transforms into a surprising electro-gaze in its closing moments, and the soft balearic sound of "Hands Of Love" are other intriguing facets of a heterogeneous, multicolored prism that looks in several directions while maintaining strong internal cohesion.

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19/02/2026