CURSED FRAME by Another Country $$$$ takes the scale and euphoria of big-room electronic music and fuses it with the physical energy of a live drummer. Opening with soft piano, ambient textures, and a brief monologue before detonating everything in a surge of synths that overwhelm with brightness, it’s loud, euphoric and cinematic.

Across its tight runtime the record moves through a range of electronic styles that are all uplifting. BODY FARM leans into liquid funk and jungle with gentle piano motifs and rolling breakbeats recalling the warmth of Hospital Records, elevated by the presence of a live drummer with human elasticity. The interplay between programmed precision and physical performance is the album’s defining strength, as tracks like TETHER and MOTH push further into high-velocity breakbeat territory layering intricate percussion beneath shimmering synth melodies that constantly shift between delicate and colossal. There are flashes of stuttered vocal fragments used sparingly, and the title track brings all these elements together pairing classic rave pads with restless drum movement that won’t stay still. The record is intense, but it never feels harsh or alienating because of the consistent sense of positivity and warmth running throughout. This is rave music that feels comforting rather than confrontational, driven by joy. At under 30 minutes CURSED FRAME leaves you wanting more, and suggests a project with a lot more to give. A brilliantly executed fusion of euphoric electronic textures and expressive live performance. In a scene that often leans towards darkness and cool detachment, this record does the opposite embracing brightness and a wide-eyed optimism. The synth work is consistently uplifting, with a sense of friendliness carried through the entire project, and an edge in the physicality and clatter of the drumming that loop-based jungle can’t replicate.