The name D-Nox & Beckers is synonymous with outdoor techno in Australia, with the duo regularly featuring at the likes of Rainbow Serpent and other summer shows in Australia over the last few years. Now Christian Smith’s Tronic label has released a new album from the group, Distance.

The opening track Sunner is reminiscent of the duo’s earlier work, although its driving house sounds are marred by a slightly cheesy hook. This seems to be a common theme through a lot of the tracks here: all have interesting elements, but usually one or two things that cause them to fall flat, in particular dated-sounding hooks and oddly-placed vocals.

While the duo is known best for a driving style, a lot of the tracks tend more towards the overly repetitive and uninventive. On the brighter side, tracks like Hate to Wait are a little more like the good old D-Nox & Beckers we used to know.

The duo has definitely moved from its classic driving and stripped-down style to a simpler and more stereotypical tech-house sound (case in point: Jacaranda, the transition arguably hinting at their lack of expertise in the latter). Distance feels rather like an indistinctive, 10-track trip through classic house and techno, featuring typical and well-known melodic structures and standard synths. In brief, this sound has been done to death.

Having been a fan of the cutting edge style of the group for many years, now I can’t help but feel that – while Beatport may say otherwise – this is more ‘stagnant’ than ‘progressive’. There’s a lot to be said for musicians who change their style as their career progresses, but Distance suggests that the duo is moving towards an entirely different audience; reinforcing the opinion of many punters that D-Nox’s closing performance at Rainbow Serpent 2011 paled in comparison to previous years. While the duo will surely continue to succeed, it’s unlikely that their performances or productions will satisfy the fans who have followed them till now.

Distance is out now on Tronic. Listen below to a 30-minute preview of the album, with each track featured in edited form.