Dream Interlock is the very pretty new album of minimalistic electronic beats and drones by Seattle-based Black Hat, a.k.a. Nelson Bean, out now on Digitalis Recordings. With 9 tracks, simply titled Dream Interlock I – IX, it weaves together a meditative environment from a rich yet simple sonic palette. Occasional slow motion techno-inspired beats come together with synth swirls to freeze time and radiate peace. Track six is the most upbeat things get, the one exception to an otherwise downtempo album. Other tracks are more outright ambient compositions, colored with contemplative synth arpeggios, reverb laden samples and soft syncopated rhythms. Dream Interlock has a similar sort of haunting vibe as Boards of Canada, but is set apart by a more digital sound and minimalist compositions, not to mention things like the piercing drone on track five.

Overall the album has a sort of icy feeling, but it’s also strangely warm and human at the same time. On the one hand, it gives the impression of navigating a snow filled silicon labyrinths, but at other times it opens up onto the breathtaking landscapes of a collectively hallucinated future.