The just released new album by Bochum Welt is just ridiculously good. For me it arrives somewhere between AFX and Brian Eno. Ridiculously strong melodies that touch you in the right places and pads that move as atmosphere drifts around them. Short stories of tracks that feel no need to outstay their welcome.

The album starts with a few atmospheric pieces, 'Color Me' and 'At Dawn', which set a calm tone before the album moves into ‘Southern England In Summer', the sound of a warm drum machine loops away as melodies arrive in layers on top. It is all just rather lovely truth be told. ‘Canyon Drive’ follows this with one of the most angelic sounding pieces of music you may hear this year. There’s something quasi-religious in the melody.

Then walllop, you are off in the realms of ‘THR - Dance Mix’. A rolling conk of beat and some melody before you drop back into the ambience of ’N Hayworth Ave’. Bochum Welt is really really good at making this aquatic ambience that has bottom end and movement to it. ‘Color Me (Mix 2)’ and ‘Sentimental’ follow and are light on the beats and all about the atmosphere.

As the album moves towards a close ‘Melodie d’Aout’ kicks in rolling an electro groove that reminds me of early Buzz releases, the sort of records I fall over myself in joy about. Sometimes all you need is a groove and a pad for emotion which all sounds very easy in Bochum Welt’s hands. ‘Mavic 1’ again rides a drum machine groove and makes me think he should really start putting out more dance floor tracks cut loud on 12s.

The album draws to a close with ‘More Light’ which feels fast in tempo but again very aquatic in feel. You know those films you’ve seen with dappled light bleeding through water as someone swims its the soundtrack to that image.

As all of the tracks are relatively short ‘Seafire’ doesn’t outstay its welcome and inadvertently Bochum Welt seem’s to have made the perfect ambient / electronic album for these times of short attention spans. It's a masterful album from an artist clearly at home with both his studio and the melodies arriving from time spent within. A wonderful piece.

You can buy Bochum Welt's 'Seafire' here via Central Processing Unit or from all good record stores.