Anytime a new record appears from Detroit veteran and Underground Resistance alum Rolando, people are going to take notice. In recent years, his production output has slowed considerably, even as the appreciation for his body of work continues to swell. “The Test” is a collaboration with another veteran artist, Saved label boss Nic Fanciulli, who brings a celebrated track record of his own to the proceedings.

Released as a one-sided 12″, “The Test” is a bustling piece of hard-edged techno. Largely eschewing melody, the song’s thudding pulse is bathed in a soupy low-end rumble that never dissipates, even as the slow-burning track climaxes nearly five minutes into its runtime. Even with that climax, “The Test” remains fairly linear, establishing a frantic pace from the outset and never really letting up on the accelerator. It’s not really a party tune, but it’s unlikely that Rolando and Fanciulli had notions of lighthearted fun in mind when they constructed it. “The Test” is more like a tool, one that grabs hold of writhing dancefloors and slowly brings them from a simmer to a boil. It may not be the most memorable thing these guys have created, but there’s little doubt that it works.