Fuck Buttons – Slow Focus (ATP Recordings, 2013)

Fuck Buttons’ Slow Focus is an overwhelming wall of sound that feels both primal and futuristic. Released in 2013, it marked the duo’s first self-produced album, and it shows—every moment feels meticulously constructed yet feral, with pulsing electronics, distorted beats, and layers of texture that demand total immersion.

The album opens with “Brainfreeze,” a relentless, driving track that feels like being pulled into an unstoppable current. “The Red Wing” merges distorted hip-hop-inspired beats with grinding, alien melodies, while “Stalker” builds tension slowly, releasing it in massive waves of sound. Every track seems to evolve organically, creating a hypnotic sense of forward momentum.

Slow Focus takes the euphoric chaos of their earlier work (Street Horrrsing, Tarot Sport) and sharpens it into something darker and heavier. There’s less outright melody here, replaced by a more brutalist approach to rhythm and noise. It’s music that feels physical, almost tactile, as if you could reach out and touch the pulsating frequencies.

What’s fascinating about Fuck Buttons is how their music resonates across genres. You can hear echoes of post-rock, industrial, and noise, yet it doesn’t neatly fit into any one category. Bands like HEALTH and Blanck Mass (the solo project of Fuck Buttons’ Benjamin John Power) owe a clear debt to this record’s towering, unapologetic scale. Meanwhile, Slow Focus’s emphasis on repetition and intensity has made it an influence in techno and experimental electronic circles.

Two lesser-known facts about Slow Focus highlight its depth. First, the album’s heavier tone was partly inspired by the duo’s grueling live schedule, with the physicality of their performances bleeding into the recordings. Second, the record was created in isolation, with Andrew Hung and Benjamin John Power recording in a Bristol studio they filled with analog synths, drum machines, and gear they modified themselves to achieve Slow Focus’s uniquely dense sound.

The result is an album that feels alive, constantly shifting and growing as it envelops you. It’s not an easy listen, but that’s what makes it so rewarding. Ten years on, Slow Focus remains a defining moment in experimental electronic music—an unrelenting, immersive experience that refuses to let go.

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