deadmau5 - mau5ville Level 1 (2018)

Mau5heads have waited nearly a decade for their king to reunite with Rob Swire, the Pendulum frontman and featured vocalist on 2009's “Ghosts ’n’ Stuff,” arguably deadmau5’s best-known song. Here, the two present “Monophobia,” a melodic trance odyssey that meditates on loneliness, with remixes from artists in the mau5trap family. Miami duo GTA shake things up with “Something Like,” a texture bomb that pings like the inside of a pinball machine, and Getter explores cinematic R&B on “All Is Lost.” As usual, though, the project’s highlight is deadmau5’s lone instrumental, the elegant “Nyquist,” which fuses abstract drills, clicks, and rhythmic snaps with the warm touch of a piano.