Liviu Gheorghe (Elf Traps/Paltin/Matthew Halsall) has superbly re-worked the single Next World by Manchester’s Caulbearers.
The Paltin Remix pushes Next World into a more hypnotic, rhythm-led space, built for late-night systems while preserving the emotional core of the original. Liviu has approached it as a beat-driven reimagining, exploring different harmonic spaces to open the track up in a darker, more immersive, cinematic way.
The original single is an intense and epic, breakbeat-driven ode to the importance of direct action and protest to create social change, both historically & in current times. It exhibits Caulbearers’ signature sound of heavy-funk rhythms & bass, lush harmonies & bitter-sweet melodies, live strings & driving guitars all building irresistibly to a crescendo.
Paltin is the electronic music alias of Liviu Gheorghe, a Romanian-born, Manchester-based composer and pianist whose work bridges the worlds of improvisation, modular synthesis, and electronic sound design. Rooted in a deep musical foundation, Paltin takes inspiration from the intricate rhythms of Eastern European folklore, impressionist harmony, and experimental sonic textures, shaping them into immersive live electronic performances that blur the line between composition and improvisation.
Under the Paltin moniker, Liviu combines piano, modular synths, foley recordings, samples, and live hardware to build dynamic soundscapes that shift between meditative ambience and rhythmic exploration. The project has been presented in notable Manchester venues and alongside peers from the city’s vibrant experimental music scene, showcasing a unique fusion of electronic music, jazz sensibilities, and spontaneous performance energy.
Liviu’s musical journey extends beyond Paltin. He continues to push genre boundaries as a core member of Elf Traps, a forward-looking duo with Rob Turner (formerly of GoGo Penguin). The group fuses live drums, synthesizers, drum machines, and bespoke electronics to craft hypnotic, evolving sound worlds where electronic beats and jazz improvisation intersect in real time.
He has contributed his talents to the Matthew Halsall Group, featuring on recordings and performances with one of the UK’s most respected spiritual jazz ensembles. Notably, he appears on Halsall’s The Temple Within project, playing piano and organ alongside creative collaborators.
Across these projects, Liviu’s artistic voice is defined by a restless curiosity — an urge to weave acoustic performance with electronic innovation, and to explore music that is both cerebral and deeply felt.
