Batu & Donato Dozzy - Exhale

Bridging the sound of two distinctive auteurs within modern electronic music, Exhale is the natural convergence of Batu and Donato Dozzy's revered, distinctive sonic signatures. With techno in the broadest sense as a framework, the pair have created an immersive listening experience that celebrates the flashpoint of inspiration and thrives on experimentation.

As Batu, Omar McCutcheon has made a huge impression on modern club music by channeling the soundsystem-rooted principles of dubstep into inventive mutations that defy easy categorisation. Donato Dozzy has been a leading figure in European techno since the mid 00s, helping pioneer a culture of deeply immersive, subtle dance music charged with ambient atmospheres. The pair first connected in Japan in 2019, discovering a mutual appreciation for each others' work and a curiosity about how their distinct sounds might intersect. The first opportunity to collaborate came through DJing together, relishing the spirit of improvisation to play a surprise B2B set at Draaimolen Festival in the Netherlands in 2023 that went viral shortly after.

In February 2025 Batu visited Dozzy's studio in Rome. Within that Aladdin's cave of hardware, the pair mapped out a continuous, instinctive flow of sketches that became the bedrock of Exhale.

"It was interesting to see Omar interacting with my studio methods," explains Dozzy. "I know my machines very well. It was fun to do something out of my routine and use my machines in a different way to turn on Omar's ideas."

"There were a few things I was very excited to use, especially with someone who's an expert and used these instruments for a very long time," Batu reveals. "We tried lots of different tempos, different rhythmic patterns. I was excited by the direction we were taking, and getting so many ideas of where it could go."

Between Dozzy's gear-focused practice and Batu's detailed software manipulations a dialogue emerged between the duo's distinct styles, making space for each other and learning along the path to a record both unique and innately connected to their respective musical legacies.

The eight fully-formed pieces that make up Exhale bear the hallmarks of both creators in equal measure. The percussion coursing through 'Flicker' bristles with Batu's spiky intensity, but the sub-bass throb and steely locomotion belong to Dozzy. The mind-warping synth impulses that build up around 'Off Axis' call to mind Dozzy's pioneering legacy in wormhole techno, but there's a dramatic sense of tension and release that speaks to Batu's instinct for wild dynamic shifts. Early on, 'Spiral' sinks into the kind of rubbery acid meditation that marks Dozzy's singular use of the TB-303, but the deftly wielded clamour of sound design on top of the rhythm section could easily find a natural home on Batu's Timedance label.

Equally, there are moments where the lines blur to the point both artists coalesce their sounds completely. The intense percussive pressure of 'Swarm' is an all-consuming web of needlepoint rhythm science, while 'Drift' revels in thick clouds of mystical vapour and spiralling arpeggios with pronounced, elegantly scaled peaks.

The album is bookended by 'Emergence' and 'Bloom', two pieces that dial back the drums to focus more roundly on melodic synthesis. Even in these more ambient moments, there's a strong kinetic urgency that drives the music forwards.

"Movement is what I think really brings the music together," Batu explains. "No matter what style it is, I think both Donato and I are producers who think a lot about how things move."

True to their musical mission, there are no one-dimensional approaches taken throughout Exhale. Transcendental sequences are laser-guided by kinetic drum science, and even the most bruising moments are balanced with a delicacy that leads straight to the heart of both producers' profound appeal. The album that has emerged feels like an honest, instinctive celebration of Batu and Dozzy's respective strengths, made all the sharper in unison.

"In the last years there has been a very interesting hybridization of genres," says Dozzy. "Many techno producers got interested into the drum & bass world, and also the opposite happened. This made it a good time for a project like this to happen."