After last year’s excellent original album “Stoccato Signals” and its companion/rework “Drone Signals”, the release of remix album “Altered Signals” could be accused of over-milking the source material. Such suggestions are quickly put to bed once you start listening though, because far from squeezing the last life from the ideas, this is an example of remix compilations at their best- taking excellent source material, sharing it around carefully selected and like-minded individuals who breathe new ideas into it, and curating it into 49 minutes of supremely high quality cinematic electronica.

Sevendeaths’ remix of “Castle” opens proceedings and gives shades of synthwave which are perhaps a slight mis-sell to an album which goes deeper and more atmospheric and doesn’t maintain the retro synth sound.

Visionist’s remix of “Fossils” or From The Mouth Of The Sun’s “Substrates” exemplify the album better- bringing the acoustic string and piano elements more to the fore in looser, more laidback environments that wear their hearts on their sleeves. The electronic elements are frequently just decorative icing, but worked sympathetically in.

Ital Tek’s take on “Silver Pit” is absolutely esquisite, revelling in Chatwin’s string sounds and playing them confidently alongside a piercing and dominating synth bass for a layout that’s unorthodox but captivating. Steve Hauschildt’s version of “Helix” with its rubbery speed shifting squeaks, and Konx-om-Pax’s “Claws” with its slow dubby synth stabs, are both a little reminiscent of some of the Orb’s more recent and more overtly digital work. The latter also gradually brings in an acid 303 pattern which is an inexplicable direct line to happiness for people with fond memories of early 90’s proper trance- people who’ll probably respond well to the perkier sounds of the Vessels version of “Hound Point”.

Pye Corner Audio’s remix of “Knots” feels like it may have been pushed to the back of the pile as it stands out slightly, with a synth-electro make-up and heavier kick that’s very strong, but feels like it’s the beginning of a different style of remix album.

Apart from the last track though, the sonic quality is generally so consistent- and so consistently high- that you could readily believe this was an artist album, all creatively drawn from the same source, and for the genre in question that’s a compliment.

Ben Chatwin’s managed to generate three high-quality albums for the price of one here, in a manner of speaking. It’s another mesmerising release that deserves broad attention.