Released on Friday, December 5th, 2025, ‘‘Places’’ signals a confident new chapter for Textbook Maneuver, the alias of composer Michael Keane. His momentum has been impossible to miss: the µ-Ziq remix of ‘Adrenaline Slip’ spotlighted by Wonderland Magazine, coverage from outlets like Magnetic Magazine, Illustrate Magazine, WWAM, Music For All, and Good Music Radar, and a steady stream count approaching 150,000. His debut LP Adrenaline Slip has been praised for blending the rigor of IDM with the emotive density of prog-leaning electronica, drawing parallels to Jon Hopkins, Nils Frahm, and touchstones like Boards of Canada and Autechre. Keane’s background in classical piano training filtered through a love for Genesis, Rush, Gary Numan, The Postal Service, U.N.K.L.E., and Phantogram, which gives Textbook Maneuver its distinct mix of precision and improvisational instinct.
‘Places’ begins with gentle piano notes that grow into a wide, frosty atmosphere filled with nostalgia. Subtle audio textures add detail to the clever synth arrangements, and soft, echoing drums guide the song to a moody, cinematic ending.Distorted edges and lightly modulated tones move in and out of focus, suggesting the influence of ambient-inspired electronica while keeping the structure grounded in meticulous sound design.
Textbook Maneuver revealed: “If you ever have walked through the corridors of a music school, you will hear piano and other instruments resonating from a distance or from behind walls and doors. This past October, I had just finished releasing some projects and took a break to write something new. As I was composing, I had feelings of nostalgia, echoes of the past, places I have been, walking through music school halls, etc and they all came together into ‘Places’. I used effects and distortion to bring out that nostalgia. I then went through some old photos from places I have been to create the simple collage for the cover art.”
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