Hvob - Too (LP)

HVOB have always worked in that sweet spot where a whisper can level a dance floor, and Too lands right there with a quiet sort of authority. The Viennese duo of Anna Müller and Paul Wallner released the album in April 2022, and it still feels fresh in the ears. Fifth albums can drift into autopilot, but this one has the patience and bite of artists who know their own language and keep finding new shades in it.

If you have a soft spot for that late night sway where the kick is steady and the room holds its breath, you’ll hear plenty to love. Müller’s voice sits close to the mic, more exhale than belt, yet every syllable carries purpose. Wallner sculpts space around her with the usual HVOB precision. Hi hats hang like frost, basslines curl in the gut, and little synth figures flicker in and out like city lights seen from a train. It is techno by temperament but songwriterly at heart. That duality has been their thing since the self titled debut, and Too sharpens it.

Take Bruise, a standout single that became a live favourite on their 2022 and 2023 shows. The title fits. The groove keeps nudging forward, patient and unblinking, as clipped vocal phrases circle a melody that never quite resolves. HVOB let the tension do the talking. When the low end finally swells, it feels earned rather than engineered. Eyes Alive plays the long game too, opening with gauzy pads and building toward a surge that hits without bluster. Both tracks tell you plenty about the album’s design. Peaks arrive, but no one is shouting about them. The power is in restraint.

Across the set, the duo lean harder into contrast than on Rocco. Crisp percussion sits next to warm, almost woozy synths. Minimal arrangements bloom into these subtle, cinematic arcs. You can imagine the sketches being written in their Vienna studio at strange hours, a lamp on, the city quiet. Müller’s lyrics are as sparse as ever, more impression than manifesto, which suits the themes the band hinted at in interviews around release. Too feels preoccupied with overload and escape, with how you find clarity when the world is too loud and too quick. The music doesn’t preach. It gives you a place to breathe.

It is also a record that rewards proper volume and good speakers. The kick drums have that physical thump you want on wax, and the midrange is clean enough to keep her voice floating above the fog. If you score HVOB vinyl, you’ll notice how the tracks invite a real front to back listen. No filler, no playlist fodder. In a Melbourne record store, this is the sort of LP I’d slide across the counter to someone who likes Moderat, The Field, or the quieter corners of Ellen Allien’s world, and say, take this home and play it after 10 pm. If you’re crate digging for Too vinyl or comparing HVOB albums on vinyl, this one feels built for the format. Slow builds, deep pockets, textures that bloom when the needle finds the groove.

One thing I’ve always loved about HVOB is their sense of scale. They can make a small idea feel huge without resorting to bombast. Too nails that balance. Even the punchier cuts keep a human touch, a bit of air in the mix, a little imperfection in a synth bend or vocal breath. The sequencing helps. You get relief at the right moments, then back into the pulse. It turns what could be a monochrome mood into something with colour and contour.

If you’re new to the duo, this is an easy entry point. If you’ve been following since Trialog or the Winston Marshall collaboration on Silk, you’ll hear how they’ve tightened the screws. The hallmarks remain, but the edges feel more deliberate, the melodies a touch more lucid. It is the kind of album that creeps up on you over a few plays and then takes up residence.

For collectors, it’s worth hunting down a copy from a local. Plenty of shops that specialise in vinyl records Australia wide have kept HVOB in steady rotation, and it never hurts to buy HVOB records online when the shelves are bare. Either way, Too is the sort of release that makes sense on a turntable and in a dark room. Let it run, and let it do what HVOB do best.