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Aug 3, 2018Qualm, is a victory lap. It is, on paper, an uncomplicated beast: a live hardware workout of claustrophobic, rhythmic acid techno. But her ability to draw out harmonic elements from the cacophony of it all is deft--that cassette tape feel is still evident.
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Aug 6, 2018Qualm is her inauguration. Its agitated kineticism and flagrant oddness, blossoming from Hauff’s intrinsic charisma and craft, is exhilarating. It is techno gorgeously streamlined; straddling the fucking weird and the primally gratifying, as present in the grimiest tunnel raves as in soundtracking the imminent robot revolution.
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Aug 3, 2018Like all of Hauff’s work, Qualm offers a lot to chew on while also resisting overanalyzing. You let it lure and lash you, let it move you or just move on.
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Aug 9, 2018Qualm is a record of fiery, analogue experimentations and jams, executed by one of the most informed specialists in weird, retro gear and obscure electro rave. Hauff turns up the Hauffist sound up to ten. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the kids in Berghain will love it.
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The WireAug 8, 2018It’s invigorating and a ton of fun. [Sep 2018, p.63]
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Aug 7, 2018With Qualm, Helena Hauff has created the record we both wanted and needed. It’s a statement of romantic infatuation amongst an otherwise hash, twisted and raw landscape. A glance into the past and a look to the future. There is nothing apologetic about this record, and that’s what makes it so great.
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Aug 2, 2018Qualm generally shifts away from the Drexciyan melodies of Discreet Desires, but it's just as precisely focused as that album, and anyone who has enjoyed her prior recordings or Hauff's unrelenting DJ sets should enjoy this one as well.
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Aug 1, 2018Qualm may just be the album to solidify her position as one of the most exciting DJ’s in the world at present, as Hauff continues to carve out her very own unique, innovative position in an often cluttered electronic dance landscape.
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Q MagazineJul 31, 2018Her penchant for acid blurts and seductive basslines rings throughout this characterful collection, drawing constellations between electro glitz, darkwave gloom and post-punk austerity. [Aug 2018, p.111]
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Jul 31, 2018With Qualm, Hauff has further enhanced her reputation as a vital voice in contemporary dance music.
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Aug 3, 2018Even at her most damaged, Hauff’s take on noise is nothing short of opulent, and it’s that alternatingly grating and sparkling attention to detail that makes Qualm so exciting. What might at first sound retro turns out to be simply timeless.
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UncutJul 31, 2018Drum machines clank and scrape, evoking not just early acid house but industrial post-punk and '80s sci-fi soundtracks. ... Yet these potentially abrasive, alien sounds are marshalled into fresh, inviting shapes. [Sep 2018, p.30]
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Jul 31, 2018The sounds and textures contained here will not be surprisingly new to anyone familiar with Hauff's previous work, but regardless the sum of the album's parts is an entirely satisfying whole, sounding at times like the sound of a machine collapsing in on itself, but not before letting you have one last dance first.
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Aug 3, 2018The fact she’s instead opted for a bunch of gritty, Bunker Records-inspired analogue improvisations makes the end product all the more enjoyable. Qualm is also underpinned by a peculiar sense of Britishness.
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Aug 2, 2018Sometimes producers catch a wave, sometimes they wipe out. But this theory is quickly rubbished by Hauff's own back catalogue. She's released consistent albums and EPs that said a lot with a little. Qualm achieves the same, but only in moments.
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