Steep Stims
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| Steep Stims | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 7 November 2025 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 47:57 | |||
| Label | Throttle Records | |||
| Producer | Clark | |||
| Clark chronology | ||||
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Steep Stims is a studio album by British electronic musician Clark, released on 7 November 2025 on Throttle Records.[1] Recorded primarily using an Access Virus synthesizer as a deliberate creative constraint, the album marks a return to purely instrumental electronic music following the vocal-driven Sus Dog (2023).[2][1] Steep Stims received generally positive reviews from music critics.[2]
Clark discovered the Access Virus synthesizer at MESS (Melbourne Electronic Sound Studio), a facility run by Robin Fox.[3][4] The first patch he played on the instrument became "Blowtorch Thimble".[3] Roughly 80–90% of the album was made using the Virus and a drum machine as a self-imposed limitation.[5][6] Clark described the album as sitting alongside his self-titled Clark (2014) and Death Peak (2017) in palette and tone.[5] "18EDO Bailiff" features a piano tuned to 18 equal divisions of the octave by microtonal specialist Angus Donald.[3]
"Blowtorch Thimble" was released as the lead single on 3 September 2025, alongside the album announcement.[1] "Civilians" followed on 30 September 2025; a music video directed and choreographed by Melanie Lane and Corps Conspirators was premiered on 1 October 2025.[7]
Critical reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
| Mojo |  [8] |
| Uncut | 80[9] |
| OndaRock | 6/10[10] |
Heather Phares of AllMusic called it "as sophisticated in its execution as his more overtly ambitious projects".[2] Inverted Audio described it as "rich in feeling" and praised its blend of trance, IDM and dancefloor energy.[11]
The album received coverage in the French press, including reviews in Les Inrockuptibles and Le Monde.[12][13] Tsugi reviewed the album favourably,[6] and Radio Micheline named it their Album of the Week.[14]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Gift and Wound" | 2:13 |
| 2. | "Infinite Roller" | 5:22 |
| 3. | "No Pills U" | 2:13 |
| 4. | "Janus Modal" | 6:26 |
| 5. | "18EDO Bailiff" | 1:48 |
| 6. | "Globecore Flats" | 5:37 |
| 7. | "Blowtorch Thimble" | 3:30 |
| 8. | "Civilians" | 3:55 |
| 9. | "Inpatient's Day Out" | 5:10 |
| 10. | "Who Booed the Goose" | 3:18 |
| 11. | "5 Millionth Cave Painting" | 1:01 |
| 12. | "Negation Loop" | 2:45 |
| 13. | "Micro Lyf" | 4:36 |
| Total length: | 47:57 | |