Seattle-based producer Jeff McIlwain, aka Lusine, returns with his 9th full-length record, Long Light, marking twenty years since he first joined the Ghostly International roster. A cited influence for myriad electronic artists including London's Loraine James and others, Lusine is known for visceral, kinetically-curious music that fuses techno, pop, and experimental composition. In recent years, McIlwain has pushed his craft skyward with more collaborative, song-forward work. Long Light shines the throughline; his signature looping patterns and textures are dynamic yet minimalist as ever. Structurally straightforward, tight, and bright, the material radiates as the most direct in his catalog, featuring vocal contributions from Asy Saavedra, Sarah Jaffe, and Sensorimotor collaborators Vilja Larjosto and Benoît Pioulard. Lusine found his sound early on, but he's never stopped pushing and pulling at it's potential, patiently deconstructing the distractions and solving the puzzles. With Long Light, a laser-focused, process-driven artist reaches an exceptionally satisfying level of clarity and immediacy. McIlwain sees the title, taken from the lyrical phrase "long light signaling the fall again," written by Benoît Pioulard for what became the title track, as a guiding device that reflects several meanings. "There's this sort of paranoia where you don't know what is real, it's an age of high anxiety and there are all these distractions," McIlwain explains. "It's like a fun house mirror situation." Following the long light is the only true way through, and he holds that metaphor to the album's recording, which also carried a cyclical nature akin to seasons. Like the start of fall, the album completes a period of cultivation; "Music making is a struggle and you have to have a ton of patience." Long Light is proof that what lies beyond the noise, at the end of the figurative tunnel, is worth all the work it's taken to get there. Across the collection, McIlwain identifies the core sonic element, a vocal cut or a simple beat sequence, from which to build everything else off. On the opener "Come And Go," he multiplies a vocal take from longtime collaborator Vilja Larjosto into a celestial choir, evoking their Sensorimotor standout "Just A Cloud." It's the bass hook on the single "Zero to Sixty," curving around the voice of Sarah Jaffe, whose pliable range and cool delivery provide the source for Lusine's unmistakable mapping. The chorus is Jaffe's ("cold-blooded") line repeated in step with melodic synth pulses and the buzzing deep bass. For the verse, McIlwain unlocks the loop and she completes the thought, giving the track a sense of tension and relief. "I feel like I am dreaming / You make me feel like I am walking on a cloud / I don't ever want to feel the ground," sings Asy Saavedra (of Chaos Chaos) on "Dreaming." This time McIlwain keeps the phrase intact, making subtle tweaks to the timbre and texture as chimes, clinks, and snaps oscillate. The album balances vocal pop motifs with some of Lusine's strongest instrumental expressions, from ambient-minded foreshadowing ("Faceless," "Plateau," "Rafters") to hypnotic head-nodders like "Cut and Cover" and "Transonic." The latter jumps out as the rhythmic centerpiece; first McIlwain outlines the track's silhouette before filling in it's details one layer at a time. Stuttering synth hums join the kick, then proliferate a step higher, harmonizing at the peak with sparkled bell sounds and a burst of feedback. "Long Light" has it all: Lusine's percussive mood-building, rendered with samples from drummer Trent Moorman, and a contortion of tender poetry, courtesy of friend Thomas Meluch, aka Benoît Pioulard (Morr Music, Kranky). "This track has a sort of melody that I haven't really messed with before," says McIlwain. "It's this very droney, mysterious thing, that I really liked, and focused on, and kind of counter balanced with a nasty wavetable patch. Tom just absolutely nailed the feel of the song." It is rare to arrive at a landmark work two decades into one's craft, but through repetition, refinement, and patience, Lusine extends a defining moment, an essential piece to his discography.
Release date:
September 15, 2023
Label:
Install our app to receive notifications when new upcoming releases are added.

Recommended equipment and accessories
-
Denon DP-400
Featuring a high-precision, belt-driven mechanism and an adjustable tonearm that ensures optimal tracking and minimal resonance
-
Vevor Ultrasonic Cleaner
Thoroughly clean and restore your vinyl records, removing dust, dirt, and grime from every groove without damaging the surface
-
Pro-Ject Phono Box DC Pre-Amp
Compact, high-performance phono preamplifier for both MM and MC cartridges, delivering a clean, detailed signal with minimal noise.
-
Nagaoka MP-110H Cartridge
Features a high-quality elliptical stylus that provides excellent tracking and minimizes distortion, delivering a detailed sound reproduction with an output voltage of 5.0 mV
-
Vinyl Care - Top Picks
A selection of accesories to keep your turntable equipment & vinyl records in the best shape
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
-
Jimmy Barnes Defiant (Red & Black Marble)
Mushroom Records
June 13, 2025 -
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Rave Gizzard (Live In San Francisco '24; Triple Splatter) [3xLP]
Reverberation Appreciation Soc
June 20, 2025 -
Bootblacks Paradise
Artoffact Records
July 11, 2025 -
Mister Romantic What's Not to Love? (Blue Marble)
Eternal Magic Rec.
June 13, 2025 -
Alexander Biggs Stay With The Horses
Impressed
May 30, 2025 -
Sally Anne Morgan Second Circle The Horizon
Thrill Jockey Records
June 20, 2025 -
Don Henley Inside Job 2025 [2xLP]
Rhino Records
May 23, 2025 -
The Delines Mr. Luck & Ms. Doom (Ox Blood)
Jealous Butcher Records
May 23, 2025 -
Vindicator Communal Decay
Nltm Records
June 13, 2025 -
Adrian Quesada Boleros Psicodelicos II (Yellow)
Ato Records
June 27, 2025 -
Vicious Rumors The Devil's Asylum
Steamhammer
August 29, 2025 -
Bruce Springsteen Tracks II: The Lost Albums [9xLP]
Legacy Recordings
June 27, 2025 -
Entheomorphosis Pyha kuilu
Svart Records
May 23, 2025 -
Alan Sparhawk With Trampled By Turtles (Sunflare)
Sub Pop
May 30, 2025