Breaking from the shadow of a critically acclaimed debut album is one of those things that is thrust upon the (fortunate) modern musician. There are few cases as potent as this as that of Axel Willner, aka The Field. With his debut, From Here We Go Sublime, he was heralded as one of modern electronica’s new kings off the back of an album that could be more defined as a sleeper hit than an overnight success. Ever the obdurate artist, though, as more and more were turning their ears to Willner’s mosaics of repetitions, the man himself was one step ahead. Second album Yesterday and Today brought a more human element to his machinist guise, integrating organic instrumentation into the fold. There was a sense that, despite the rewarding whole, rushed experimentation was playing on his thoughts to break free from the inevitable ‘minimal techno’ label that he was, semi-admittedly, trying to avoid. So it is with a sense of relief that Looping State of Mind has honed those techniques to something far more fruitful.

As the strained samples of ‘Is This Power’ beckon the album’s beginning, absorbing dischordant bass lines and a constant melodic ambience along the way, it’s clear Willner is thriving within his new mixture of sonics. That same ethos of repetition is never lost, but it is twisted into seductive new shapes and grooves as each part breaks down and rebuilds itself around its melodic protagonist. ‘It’s Up There’ then continues the journey that ‘Leave It’ from Yesterday and Today built so brilliantly. With its foundations fully engrained in the driving four-to-the-floor beat he is as well known for as anything, the track truly springs into life as its rhythmic impetus comes to fruition with a slap of snare and, of all things, a funky, octave laden bass guitar line. As the song disintegrates into what could seem a glacial abyss, it’s the driving force of those drums and bass that pull it all to a life-affirming safety.

Whilst the technique may be out of the ordinary for Willner, what is certain is that his heart and emotional tack is stronger willed than ever. Much of the album is built around a far softer, melodic and amorous pace. ‘Arpeggiated Love’ proves prime case in point, with its simplistic swoon of samples coursing their way through an ocean of hypnotic synth sounds. But the urgency is always retained. As the beats get louder and force their way through a forest of sonic bliss, before being carefully placed to rest on bed of star-like noise, it becomes a perfect display of Willner’s ability to create some emotional enormity with the most intricate of musical subtleties. The same can be said of ‘Then It’s White’ – a track built on foundations of an ornate, single key piano line being floating over vocal apparitions and soft, percussive textures. It’s, without doubt, The Field’s most introspective and honest piece of music to date, and combined with the mesmerising stutter of closer ‘Sweet Slow Baby’, is a testament to just how profound his music can be.

The stigma of From Here We Go Sublime will still exist – as for everyone else, those things only seem to wither but without completely dying away. But what Looping State of Mind has proved is that Axel Willner has a creative touch like few others within his reluctant circle. Whilst this may just be the first true step into a whole new world, it is one taken with magnificent aplomb and sets the tone for what will, hopefully, be a career littered with even more heartwarming highlights.