Oblique

Since the release of DAMAGED in 2024, Stuttgart-based producer Michael Fiedler aka GHOST DUBS has been surfing intensifying waves of adulation, finding himself praised regularly by such diverse underground legends as Justin Broadrick (Godflesh/Jesu), Regis, Stefan Betke (POLE), Steve Von Till (Neurosis), and others.

And now, with the release of Oblique, out 25th September on Kevin Martin’s imprint PRESSURE, his recognisable mastery of sculpting sound waves results in a spellbinding set of alien soundscapes. Larger in scale, richer in tone and certainly more cinematic, its cloudy abstractions and shadowy pulsations are no less hypnotic… in fact, probably even more so than its highly acclaimed predecessor. Lower, deeper and definitely moodier, Fiedler has upped his game by reaching further down into his own sonic void, conclusively proving that more ambient definitely doesn’t mean more boring. The appropriately titled 2nd album is a sublime collection of submerged rhythms and craftily blurred melodies.
The album’s opener and single “Low Times” makes it glaringly apparent that Fiedler has pushed himself still further in terms of premium craftsmanship, in his relentless quest to extend heavy subterranean grooves and addictive narco loops. With atmospheric pressure pushed to the max, the track resembles a dream date for prime dirt-house-era Andy Stott and Berlin dub-tech pioneers Basic Channel, setting up the album’s heavy-lidded style and corroded sound entirely fittingly…

Across Oblique, Fiedler demonstrates his knack for crafting so much from so few component parts, seemingly becoming a maestro of minimalism. From the furtive balletic gyrations of “After All” and haunting ambience of “Soft Collapse” to the noirish atmospherics of “Blackout Dust” and the seriously chopped-and-screwed ghost of Jamaican reggae on “Bombed Suburbs”, the album moves between submerged rhythms, ambient noise and cinematic tension.

But perhaps what is most impressive about Oblique is that Ghost Dubs makes experimental music that is sensual, funky and literally stunning in its concussive impact, instead of being dry or alienating. Dense in the best possible sense, heavyweight without being punishing, it is the sound of dub techno if it burnt its own rigid rule book and was remixed by the spirit of DJ Screw.

By the time you reach the vaporous mist of album finale “Almost A Structure”, which sounds like KMRU jamming with Echospace, the realisation hits home that Oblique succeeds by navigating its own ultimate evaporation. Any obvious rhythm is craftily filtered out to leave a blurred and blunted residue, full of mystery and question marks. Much like the rest of this incredibly immersive record, it is a triumph of inferred narrative.

It should come as no surprise that Ghost Dubs, aka composer Michael Fiedler, recently scored the acclaimed arthouse film Sound of Falling. The film won the Jury Prize at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and was selected as Germany’s entry for Best International Feature Film at the 2026 Oscars, subsequently making the shortlist.

Oblique is a future ambient classic that gets more compelling with every listen, illuminating Ghost Dubs revelling in the record’s own unrecognizability and delighting in plotting every elliptical detour. It is the sound of Ghost Dubs shedding his influences and making it 101% clear he has found his own sound.

Ken Li 2026