‘Xeno’ is a haunting yet strangely beautiful release from Manchester’s Cassiel. The chromatic opening notes of ‘Xeno’ create the eerie vibe the tune holds on to throughout. An edited vocal line provides the primary melody of the track. Cassiel is aiming for mood and atmosphere rather than a catchy pop hook, and he succeeds perfectly. The lack of percussion creates a wishy-washy feeling of stasis and claustrophobia, while the slowly emerging collage of sound at the bottom of the texture adds another unsettling layer of noise to this dense, artistic release. Be sure to check it out in the context of his debut mixtape, Silence. - Dan Peeke