Do you still remember the moment when you stepped into the party hall, right into the fog, and in the eye of the storm? do you still remember the first bass drum, the first break, the first flash? and although the party has already started, you feel heartily invited? yes, this is the place you don't want to leave anymore, at least for quite a while. some of you might say this is rave kitsch, the club folklore for those who have been around since the very beginning. but for dusty kid, it is the vital experience, the moment where the journey starts. the moment his debut album with the perfect title “a raver's diary” is all about. it is a feeling the convincing power of which is nourished by the pure, unfiltered experience, in other words: pure passion. paolo alberto lodde aka dusty kid aka one half of duoteque, comes from italy. at the young age of 11 he started mixing mozart, examined meticulously piano and string, and insists that the first word he could speak was not “mummy” but “record”. the music he creates is great sound cinema, always direct and focused. he did not even hesitate to call one of his tracks “i love richie hawtin”, simply because he loves richie hawtin. like michael cretu or coldplay, enya's “orinoco flow”, and of course the early 1990s rave sound. “a raver's diary” wears its heart on its sleeve: without any minimal-technocratic falderal, dusty kid pushes the audience straight into the party and tells them the tale of one who travelled to learn what partying meant. not more, not less. at first “here comes techno” and “the underground persistence” welcome the traveller right in the middle of the dance-floor. but this party has already started heading towards the first peak: the sound quickly turns into banging synth attacks and resolutely marching beats that end in the psychotic glissandi of “lynchesque” and its high bass wave which is driving the beach tourists in front of it. you would not expect anymore after that. but dusty kid always manages to find the right link: “klin” and its unexpected, flashing emotionality stops the free fall, and almost unnoticeably shifts the direction of the whole album. like a dj dusty kid is the puppet master: by subtly changing the coordinates, he surprises the audience, yet always sticks to the flow and precise dramaturgy. “cowboys” for example used to be a b-side track, a kind of wallflower. on “a raver's diary” it has become a secret hit: a smooth organ fest with a catchy bass that will kick you off your chairs. the spherical sequencer techno of “moto perputuo” is an homage to the great melodies of the past which have been pimped up with an incomparable and innovative bass design. “the fugue” is dusty kid's approach to weirdo instrumental pop music: this track is like a charming crooner and will turn each prime time junkie into a crying student and autograph hunter. “pluk” and “america”, too, do not shy away from any productive risk: the first is a tribalist club smasher, the bone breaker from the fog; the latter is a melancholic opus magnum, and even the hardest raver will be stunned by the emotional power. with “agaphes”, a style study in two parts, “a raver's diary” finally approaches dawn: but it does not herald a dull after hour, it rather announces a splendid final, the perfect end of a party that could go on forever. “nemur” is the pop gem, the great techno chanson, and the best “good bye” you can imagine. maybe “a raver's diary” will the album for any dj: the perfect mix tape, the ominous recording of this ultimate party everyone is talking about. music to die for, music to play with air synths. it is definitely a stunning debut, and the breathtaking statement of an artist in best form. and we are all part of it and really happy!