Early works also displayed an interest in the sinister or melancholy nature of children's literature. His 2000-1 work, "Netsuke" (from the Japanese miniature sculptures called "netsuke") – commissioned by the ensemble Endymion at the request of Hans Werner Henze and "Detail from the Record" (2002, after Japanese folk tales). Including such works as "Theatre of Attractions" (2007) and "Wunderkammer[konzert" (2008), hallmarks of his more recent style show an interest in what the composer describes as 'unreliable machines': short bursts of mechanistic material that repeat, are transformed but ultimately burn themselves out.