Now if I only owned a car, a very fast car. Like light blurring through the window of a speeding car, the electronic textures in Orchestra of Bubbles flow in glistening, diffused streams of energy. It was probably not recorded in the middle of a long drive, but with song titles like "Turbo Dreams" and "Jet", the album seems perfectly tuned to buzzing, tangled freeways. Or so I imagine. Seriously, anyone have a car I borrow for about an hour?

The duo behind Orchestra of Bubbles is Berliners Ellen Allien, artist, DJ, and founder of BPitch Control Records, and Shitkatapult's Apparat. Allien grew up in West Berlin during the warming end days of the cold war. A year in London exposed her to the frenetic Acid House craze, but she returned to Berlin, her "city of possibilities" and entered the city's burgeoning electronic scene. To date she's released three full length albums and an innumerable amount of remixes. Said Pitchfork about Allien's 2003 album Berlinette, "It's a record that German techno enthusiasts and Bjork fans can agree on; it tweaks and thumps and then pulls gorgeous ghostly pop out of it; it's big and solid and lovely." Those are appropriate adjectives for Orchestra of Bubbles, really.

As his bio states ornately, Mr. Apparat's music is sensitively orchestral. Consider it chamber IDM, string arrangements via mouse clicks. I'm only now familiarizing myself with his output by listening to the three excellent tracks he's posted on MySpace (the fourth track, "Way Out" is on Orchestra of Bubbles). Based on these, I will need to hear more from Apparat very soon.

If I knew both artists better, I may be able to better delineate one's approach from another, but is that really necessary? Together Allien and Apparat have put together one of the most consistently enjoyable and endearing albums I've heard this year. I've tried unsuccessfully to pin down the mood that pervades the songs. Is it sad or just realistic? Orchestra of Bubbles' appeal is ineffable and in my opinion, undisputable.

Download "Do Not Break" (MP3)
Buy Orchestra of Bubbles from Amazon.com