''Qualm'' is the second studio album by German
electronic music
Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroa ...
DJ and record producer
Helena Hauff
Helena Hauff is a German DJ and record producer based in Hamburg, Germany. She is known for her "stripped-down techno and electro tracks" that are recorded using strictly analog equipment and draws influences from acid house, EBM and industri ...
. It was released on 3 August 2018 by
Ninja Tune.
The album was critically acclaimed and the track "Hyper-Intelligent Genetically Enriched Cyborg" was named as one of the best electronic tracks of 2018 by ''
Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
''. In comparison to her previous album, ''
Discreet Desires'' (2015), the tracks on it had more traditional song structure and they were "more poppier."
[
]
Production
While creating the album, Hauff used one synthesizer, which was Roland TR-808, and one drum machine.
Title
The title has multiple definitions. The German meaning of "qualm" is "smoke" or "fumes", as in English language, it is "an uneasy feeling of doubt, worry, or fear."
Critical reception
''Qualm'' received positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7 ...
score of 82, based on 15 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".[ ]Philip Sherburne
Philip Sherburne is an American journalist, musician and DJ based in Barcelona. He coined the term "Microhouse" (in a 2001 article for ''The Wire'')Cox, Christoph; Daniel Warner (Eds.) (2004). ''Audio Culture: Readings in Modern Music''. Continuu ...
of ''Pitchfork
A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.
The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
'' stated that ''Qualm'' is a "spartan mix of techno
Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...
, acid, EBM, and coldwave".[ Nathan Wesley of '']The Line of Best Fit
''The Line of Best Fit'' is an independent online magazine based in London, concentrating on new music.
It publishes independent music reviews, features, interview, and media. Founded by Richard Thane in February 2007 and currently edited by P ...
'' opined that the album is a "nocturnal, adventurous album that sees Hauff take a progressive leap forward from her 2015 debut '' Discreet Desires''."[
]
Track listing
Notes
* "Btdr-Revisited" is stylised in lowercase letters.
Personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Qualm''.
References
{{Authority control
2018 albums
Ninja Tune albums
Helena Hauff albums