With Human Energy, Travis Stewart (aka Machinedrum) has made a career-defining album, one which will take him from best-kept-secret of the electronic music cognoscenti to breakout star of the US music scene. Why and how? The simple answer is that he’s fallen in love and moved to California, let in light and warmth to his always technically stunning productions. The complex answer is, well, more complicated. But then, you can spend forever trying to explain or you can just revel in this remarkable album.
Let’s begin with the simple. Written between January and April 2016, the record “reflects a period of great change in my life. I moved across the country to a new city, I proposed to the girl of my dreams, I moved into a new house, bought a brand new computer and set off to write a new album.” But as well as these personal elements, moving to California allowed Stewart to explore a long-held interest in