Steven Warwick

Anyone who has caught his live shows as Heatsick or under his own name can testify his method of using limited means to achieve maximalist hypnotic effect. Accompanied by Jon Davies (Kepla) on piano, with Warwick on melodica, percussion, drum machine and vocals, the duo transform familiar material from Nadir and MOI into something altogether looser, more visceral and kaleidoscopic. Recorded in 2023, the performance captures a pivotal moment; Warwick delving back into the joy of improvising through his recent catalogue while debuting new material in its most unguarded, jammed out bliss state.

"Salvation" sheds its hi-energy runway skin to become a melancholic, gospel-intoned ballad. "The Mezzanine" expands from skeletal electronic monologue into crescendoing piano sprawl. "Over There" takes on a 2 step jazz cafe mood , while "Kind of Blue" reveals deceptive simplicity. The approach is paradoxical: strip each song to its bare minimum, then let it swell into maximalist, hypnotic spirals. The new material pushes even further into uncharted territory.

Opening epic "The Grotesque," reworked from a performance text, sets the tone. "Going" channels Les Rallizes Dénudés' scuzz ecstasy and spiritual yearnings. "O Solomon!" evokes Leonard Cohen and This Mortal Coil, while "Millennial Vague" receives its first ever live performance. Warwick has always had his subtle camp and theatrics, weaving hypnotic loops like a circus hand plate spinner, anchored by the calm reassuring voice of a campside fire recital. In the intimate setting of Cafe Oto, the set is allowed to simultaneously unfold over the course of an hour while tapping into theatres of eternal music intertwined with a pop sensibility. It's Warwick at his most unguarded: the mischief is still there, but this time it belies something more tender. An essential document of things to come.