Looping State of Mind

2011 album from Swedish Techno artist Axel Willner AKA The Field. Instead of coasting, as one of the inadvertent models for the current "chill" thing, a producer who'd probably earn infinite props just for repeating himself, Willner decided to put 99 percent of his acolytes to shame here. True, there are still tracks, like "It's Up There", that recall Willner's best-loved stuff, but even they feel richer, like the early Field in 3D and high-def. Willner now fleshes it out with shiver-inducing Soul music harmonies that owe less to sleek German Techno than Gospel-tinged American House. On Looping, he packs all seven tracks with curveballs, and each new direction feel successful, vital, surprising. Kompakt.