A Vision Of Panorama

Review: It's been a while since we last heard from the Mellophonia label and its star attraction, A Vision Of Panorama, but now the producer known as Mikhail Khvasko is back with a new record that expands on the soft and silky Balearic house sound he established himself with across some wonderful EPs and 2016's "Aquafusion" album. The sun is still very much shining down on this new record, which leads in with the fittingly titled "Delicious Saw". Khvasko's whole sound is geared towards celebration of gorgeous synth tones, and so it goes here thanks to that seriously tasty sawtooth wave. "Lum" cools down the boogie bump of its predecessor for something more reflective, while "Euphoria" gets into an oh-so-sweet house funk that would sound at home on Strictly Jaz Unit. "Fourth" finishes the EP off with a seriously sticky bassline squelch and some effervescent piano lines - another melodic marvel on a record full of them.

Review: Under the A Vision of Panorama alias, Mikhail Khavsko has released some of the most beguiling nu-Balearic music of the past few years. Aquafusion is his long-awaited debut album, and is sure to further enhance his already high reputation. Drawing on sun kissed synthesizer grooves, languid nu-disco and hazy pop for inspiration, the album boasts all manner of ear-pleasing highlights. These include the new age inspired ambient slinkiness of "Open Sequences", the Gigi Masin style bliss of "Seagulls", the mid-'80s synth-pop-goes-dancing bounce of "Barbados", and the baked, horizontal pop of "Duality" (which notably features the drowsy vocals of Krista Michaela).

Review: Since debuting on the sadly departed Aficionado label six years ago, Mikhail Khvasko's A Vision Of Panorama project has become one of the more reliable sources of sun-kissed Balearic soundscapes. He's in a particularly cheery and positive mood on this first outing of 2020, confidently skipping between jazz-funk influenced Balearic boogie (tasty opener "Atlantic Dawn"), late-80s style deep breakbeat haziness (the swelling chords, toe-tapping beats and Nu Guinea style synthesizer flourishes of "Mediterranean Tribal"), languid sunrise warmth (standout "Sentimental Coast", whose twinkling piano solos are sublime) and bubbly, synth-propelled jazziness (the similarly awesome "Vibechos"). In other words, it's another must-have collection of cuts from a modern Balearic maestro.