Catching The Waves

Unregulated Nuclear Power Can Be A Good Thing

 

CTW tends to stay away from that big yellow thing in the sky unless it comes in the form of a five-track minimal EP. As luck would have it, Bertech's The Sun, released on Spanish audio/video netlabel Miga, is just that thing. What are the odds?

The EP starts with the title track. The introductory bars to any dance track always fill me with fear - is this going to be yet another tired, uninspired, four-to-the-floor, will-this-ever-end dance track, bereft of interest, groove and personality? Fear not. The Sun rises to the occasion. Heh. The track's simple drum track is augmented by a plethora of beeps, tinkles, pops and other sundry noises resulting in something that is booty friendly yet titillating to the ear.

The flecks and tics of Blocked create a metronomic soundscape that should be as boring as basketball, but Bertech keeps rearranging his minimalist elements in such a way that the track remains upbeat and enticing. Like the other four tracks, it feels detailed, textured and craftsman-like. Cemento Negro somehow manages to be an attractive listen despite consisting mainly of a hectic bass and kick drum combo, a hi-hat, and reverberating thumps and sweeps. It's a relentless, highly competent track whose compact sound will keep exhausted dancers shuffling around the floor even though they know the last bus home is due any minute.

Bon Voyage is a roller. An understated, bubbling bass keeps things moving while acidic synths and filter sweeps par-tay. Lastly, arpeggiated synths, a tight beat and a bass as sturdy and reliable as a company car mean that Crema Caliente epitomises the whole EP.

Listening to Bertech's breakdowns is like sucking on a lemon sherbet; the more you do it, the sweeter it gets. He ramps up the white noise and then returns a stripped-down, pristine beat to the dance floor so smoothly and funkily that it doesn't get tiresome. If this very professional album was a doorman, it would be well-dressed, polite, friendly and ex-special forces.

Bertech - The Sun (link to individual mp3s and zipped album)

Bertech on MySpace

Miga audio/video netlabel (Lengua española y inglés. Gracias!)

It's got a wonderful defence mechanism...

Listening to minimalism always makes me feel as though something weird is happening. It's music, but not as I know it. Tom Ellis's Switched Off EP, just released by Berlin netlabel Pentagonik, is strange. Different. Alien. It's like hearing a Martian watchmaker count sheep in his sleep.

The opener, Switched Off, is switched on from the very start, abruptly dropping the listener into a soundscape that could only be minimal: hardly any melodic content, precious little development, and an all-pervading rhythm made up of dry, short sounds. Snippets of piano flirt with spoken vocals and thus lend a jazzy, naturalistic feel to what would otherwise be a robotic listen.

Slim is reminiscent of what little Richie Hawtin I've heard. The beat is easy to dance to, but it's the barely noticeable synths and ticks and taps that give it that unmistakeably "minimal" flavour. The slurred, whispered vocals make it an intriguing listen.

Sixty One Be has a guitar-ish riff that tries to break through the super-detailed beat but fails, becoming a rhythmic element instead of a melodic one. Again, it's only after a while that you start to notice the subby, bubbling bass, so subtly is it wrought. Unlike that last sentence.

Beginners is minimal with an ambient slant; the dancefloor rhythm is still there, but background hisses and crackles and ghostly vocals lend the track a more human air than the rest of the EP, until the final minute ends in a sparse 4/4 beat, ideal for any DJ who wants to throw it into a mix.

I'm sure the whole EP will see the light of day gloom of night at minimal clubs everywhere. The precision and attention to detail is deeply impressive; more than that, Tom Ellis's exploration of jazzy, funking minimalism is a chunk of fun. And if you think that's difficult to say, remember that he comes from Wales, the land of vowels and phlegm. (He's also a co-founder of Trimsound netlabel, so is obviously an all-round good egg.)

Repeated listens will reveal more and more detail in these tracks, not least because their bit rate is an exemplary 320 kbps, but unfortunately this means that the mp3s are large. Pentagonik have thoughtfully provided the option to download individual tracks so those without broadband can still hear the music. It might be an idea for Pentagonik to offer the option of choosing a lower bit rate so that minimal aficionados on dial-up get to hear Switched Off before nature ensures their heads will no longer need shaving. Failing that, visitors to the label's very snazzy website can pretend to be a DJ on its ultra-cool home page. Now you're curious...

Tom Ellis - Switched Off EP (link to individual mp3s and zipped album)

Tom Ellis on MySpace

Pentagonik netlabel

Grand Theft Auto 5: Ambient City

I first heard Choc's work at the music production website KVR, where his Mimesis Algorithm knocked the dregs from my clay pipe. It's a click 'n' cut track, full of atmospheric glitches, with a sparse but effective piano and cello accompaniment. The clincher is the bridge, which is the sound of a modem firing up; in the context of the track, it's perfect. If you have a friend who likes classical music but isn't too keen on contemporary stuff, or vice versa, point them to Mimesis Algorithm. I don't think it's available for downloading at present, but you can still hear it at Choc's MySpace.

All of which leads me to Choc's highly downloadable four-track EP, Solstice Urbain, available at Jamendo. But first, a haiku:

8000 albums

All free, no hidden charges

Jamendo calls you

Learn to say this in one breath and repeat it to friends and acquaintances. Your procreation will soar as people discover how cool you are. Back to the review:

Choc is a Frenchman who works in signal processing, statistics and telecommunication, making him eminently suited, I would have thought, to produce ambient electronica. To quote the man himself: "Solstice Urbain is a collection of four songs composed in 2004-5 which reflect the universe of a fictive city." The album could be classified as "industrial ambient minimal" because intimate clanks (oxymoronic, I concede) and rhythmic thumps and thuds abound. Now, I could easily kick a dustbin downstairs and claim to be an ambient artist; the only difference between Choc and me is that he's composed addictive music whereas my effort would still sound like a dustbin being kicked down a staircase. I don't know how he manages to convey emotion through abstract sounds, but I'm happy to listen in dumb admiration.

First off, Choc gently prises your ears open with Resurrection industrielle. Imagine listening to the world's biggest glass harp being played inside a Tibetan monastery's boiler room and you'll get the idea.

Introspection digitale introduces a pulsing bass and a flapping (yes, really) kick drum with feisty interruptions from what sounds like a short-circuiting fusebox. Most high frequency sounds are filtered out, giving the music a muffled feel befitting the track's title. It ends with a heartbeat, Pink Floyd fans.

The third track, Chaos Indus-nat, finds us among leaking pipes, their echoing drips slowly increasing in frequency until we stumble upon a hard-working computer terminal. It's like exploring a sewage system, but in a good way. I release that last sentence under a Creative Commons licence. Do with it what you will.

Misanthropie Numérique follows a classic electronica recipe: glitchy drums, smooth synths and a bit-crushed ending. Like the rest of the EP, I'm sure it contains a subliminal "keep listening" message.

It's perfectly possible to listen to this album while cruising the streets of GTA 4's New York. But I warn you, you might have to pull over, switch the engine off and recline your seat. Let others investigate the city; you're busy exploring sound. And, although it's optional, you can always put something in Choc's parking meter. It might prompt him to correct the typo on his album cover. ;-)

Choc - Solstice Urbain (link to individual mp3s and zipped album)

Choc's MySpace

Campanologists Rejoice

My last review raved about an album that hit the net in, um, 2003, so as compensation here's something that's just appeared, mewling and puking, in the maternity ward. Foolk has released an EP with five remixes of Bells, a track from his new album Red Pills For Daddy, soon to be released on the Deadred label. CTW isn't the type of website that reviews all the latest netlabel releases (I'm too lazy discerning for that), but Foolk's Bells Remixes EP is definitely worth a listen. You can hear the original track at Foolk's MySpace. So, from the top:

1. Bells (Abuse/Rain & Hail Mix) - a rolling bassline and breakbeatish drums greet gently descending synths and blend with a bit of chopped guitar. We're off to a good start.

2. Bells (Karaoke Tundra & Peto Tazok Remix) - I'm guaranteed to love anything with the words Karaoke and Tundra in it, as I've said before. But curse my monolingual ways - all I can make out are those two words in the characteristically mad-as-a-hatter chopped vocal. Did Mr Tazok have to place KT in a straitjacket in order to finish the track, I wonder?

3. Bells (Millex/Latin Lover Remix)  - Here your ears get the old "kick/snare/kick/snare/here come the trancy synths" treatment. Enjoyable, but it fades out just as it gets going.

4. Bells (Milos 120 Remix) -  Hmm, let's see. *takes a swig* Ooh, glitchy, moody. No, wait, *sluices around teeth* here's a kick and a snare and *makes disgusting sucking noise* I'm getting some some bit-crushing and a taste of elderberry. Hey, it's minimal! *refuses to spit out* What's more, the tiny little pops and clicks create a melodic soundscape. *swallows mouthful and looks for more* Minimal fans might have heard it all before, but I found this remix to be an absolute treat. It feels futuristic. Excellent production, too. *hic*

5. Bells (Ear Drum Kru/Ring The Bell Remix) - Steel drums, a screaming James Brown - from Think (About It)? - and a sampled, silly vocal. What's not to like? It's a jolly dance-pop track that leaves me reflecting that the whole EP has put a smile on my face.

All of these remixes approach the one track differently, thus avoiding the curse of the "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" remix that makes you wonder why the remix was attempted in the first place. This is a fun, free EP that has piqued my interest in Foolk's forthcoming record. I hope it does the same for you.

Foolk - Bells Remixes EP (zipped album)

Deadred label

Foolk's website

Foolk on MySpace

Bring Out Your Dead

I've just had to chuck a load of festering, maggoty breves and semi-breves onto a horse-cart that's passing down the street; every note longer than a minim has died from lack of use. I blame Kampion and his Invisible EP, released on Mexico's Filtro netlabel. Kampion is the alter ego of Guillermo Guevára, who forms half of the two-man electronica outfit, Duopandamix. Invisible is what might be called "glitch-funk". Not sure about the genre name. How about funktronica? Nu-jazz? (Yuk. "Nu" should be thrown into a wood-chipper.) Microfunk? Never mind, I'll leave it to CTW's six billion* readers to decide.

Kampion eases us gently into his sonic universe with Pirata, a stately groove that seems hectic because of the plethora of glitches that dance around the speakers while snippets of vocals provide the minimalist tune. Next up is Primaveral and its brutally chopped melody; if its fragments were any shorter the melody would become incoherent - it's amazing how little information the ear requires before the brain fills in the gaps.

Routes is full of polyrhythms, record scratches, and spliced vocals: all ingredients that tickle CTW's fancy. A modest bass pops up and ushers in the appearance of some very mild reverb and delay to fill out the track. Two-thirds of the way in, the track gets even catchier when a lovely (if you like that sort of thing), high-passed stab of white-noise appears in an impeccably groovy riff that sounds like a pastiche of futuristic car horns. Anyone who likes glitch, funk, IDM, electronica, etc. will enjoy and learn from this track.

The start of the title (and final) track, Invisible, shows that Kampion is not adverse to creating a dreamy reverberating soundscape only to slap it away with a glitchy, funky beat. My only quibble is that a kick drum/bass element is rather forward in the mix, so forward that my speakers struggled with it somewhat, but as the rest of the EP is an exercise in sonic expertise this may well be intentional.

This danceable music is unusual - there's hardly a bass line worthy of the name; everything sounds "trebley" but not piercingly so. Invisible's sounds are clean and spare with little sign of reverb or delay, so tightly are the snaps and pops packed. The rhythms are tight, funky, and garnished with a South American special sauce that adds a delicious swing to proceedings. The panning is excellent, with glitch breaks coming at just the right speed - quick enough to stay funky and slow enough to retain intelligibility.

This is a surprisingly gentle, good-humoured album that displays a high level of skill and inventiveness. Ah, free Latin electronica, how I love thee.

Kampion - Invisible EP (link to individual mp3s and zipped album)

Kampion on MySpace

Duopandamix on MySpace

Filtro netlabel

*potentially...

Speakers for Earmuffs

Stolen unashamedly from the comprehensive music production website KVR:

Q: "Please recommend an ambient album."

A: "Go for a walk."

Well, it made me laugh. But then, I don't have to go for a walk. I can sit here and get fat and happy because I've already got today's CTW recommendation, he said smugly. I'm new to ambient but I understand it eschews traditional rhythm sections and most melodic elements, preferring to concentrate on disparate and ethereal sounds to form a pleasing, almost hypnotic, whole. (Not a bad analysis, eh? This is all free, you know.)

CTW usually features albums that have been online for an ice age or two, but today's choice, Urlaub auf Balkonien by krill.minima, was released in October on the sainted Thinner netlabel. I'm in danger of getting trendy, but I don't care; this album is so good that it's usurped my vetting procedure like James Bond getting past Customs.

What to expect: white noise, scratches, clicks and pops, echoes, delays, sepulchral reverberation, the most gorgeous otherworldly pads and synths, and an occasional oh-so-cool-if-only-they'd-play-a-proper-blues-phrase-but-actually-this-is-ok electric piano waving hallo. The stunning Strandpalast is like hearing a pebbly beach express itself through music (trust me), and the tempo of the eerie Projektor deviates just enough to unsettle the listener, but if you're wondering whether Urlaub auf Balkonien is your cup of mint julep, try these:

CTW's recommended tracks:

Sommerdellen, a Satie-like conversation between two (sometimes three) notes that will resonate right between your eyes.

Leichtes Glimmen, a track that sounds vaguely industrial until overtaken by a wash of lullaby synths and endless echoes. It's currently my favourite track on the album.

This album is sneaky; before you know it, you've stopped what you're doing and you're swaying in time like a rabbit hypnotised by a snake. The soundscape is so intimate I keep debating whether to strap my computer's speakers to my head. I am normal. Sort of.

Broadband users:  krill.minima - Urlaub auf Balkonien (zipped album)

56K dial-up people: Individual mp3s

Any Colour But Beige

(I know, I know. It's the best I could do, ok? Graphics are a dark art and I'm wearing a blindfold.)

Theodor Zox's unimaginatively titled Pastels 1-4 consists of four tracks of restrained and tightly constructed minimal/microhouse, all of which come in at around the five minute mark. And no, I have no idea what microhouse is. Or minimal. I can barely cope with speech.

Pastel colours are wishy-washy but Pastels 1-4 is anything but. These compositions are tightly controlled; there are no raucous sounds or sudden changes of tempo, no vocals or obvious samples. Instead, lots of sounds are arranged around a basic kick-snare-kick-snare rhythm.

"Yeah, it's called dance, you nerd!" shouts the internet.

This should be as boring as corned beef, but because Theodor Zox has ensured that his timbres differ, it's a lot of fun to listen to; snares may rasp, kicks may thud, and synth pads may warm, but it's the extraneous sounds that seduce. Each track is flecked with soft and harsh sounds, reverberating basses, tight basses, bouncy synths and minimalist clicks and cuts.

Oker Motion starts off plain and simple (kick, snare, background synth) and becomes a welter of high/low-passed pads and clicks and cuts. It should be noisy but it's not. B.Script does the same thing but adds a bouncing bass and call-and-respond synths that make my head nod and my hips twitch. (Sorry about that mental image.) There's more of the same, if not quite so catchy, in Deep Fog, a track that grows on you. The EP ends with Dawn In Blue, a rolling, techy minimalist dance track that doesn't draw breath yet feels relaxed thanks to the underlying bass that rolls calmly underneath the clicks and cuts. The mix is cleverly handled; there's reverb but it sounds very tight, as though it's pressing up against the speakers. Nothing gets swamped.

Listening to this is like buying an expensive saloon car - it may not turn heads, but once you get inside you can't fail to appreciate the workmanship. Theodor Zox, a music-mad Dane, is an excellent chauffeur. (The economists among CTW's vast readership should note that yours truly is light years away from ever affording an expensive car. I take the bus because CTW likes to keep it, like, real.)

Pastels 1-4 is terrific. Download it and encourage the free netlabel scene. The album was initially released on Thinner as THN059 though I can't find it there any more (please contact me if I'm wrong).

Album (follow the link for individual mp3s and a zip file):

Theodor Zox: Pastels 1-4 at Archive.org

Prickly Heat

ALTA INFIDELIDAD - CACTUS Y VOLCANOES

Your esteemed host is still fairly new to electronic music, so Cactus Y Volcanoes was quite an eye-opener. I can now say that I like Chilean minimalism, ambient, and electronica. Alta Infidelidad are the duo of Christian Dittmann and Jorge Cortés, two South Americans who really understand how to manipulate sound. Each of the tracks on the album feel fresh and mysterious; it's hard to predict what's going to come next, except that it will tease the ear. The album is very restrained - there are no harsh dynamics or raucous sounds at all - but because Alta Infidelidad use such a broad sonic palette they have created a consistently entertaining album. It sounds modern yet timeless. (Trite but true.)

It took me a few plays to get into it. It's an ideal album to play while doing something else so the sounds seep into your consciousness before you know it. My inexperienced ears still expect to hear a tune or a melody when listening to music, but Cactus Y Volcanoes doesn't play that game. Have a listen to Oeste, which starts off with seagulls and the incoming tide...wait a second or two and then your ears will delight in the gentle surge of a synth as it sweeps onto the beach in perfect time with the next wave - and then we move on to an unrelenting but beautifully engineered rhythm. Or try Canción De Cuna, which is like listening to an airport lounge with a spirit of its own.

The album is full of "found sounds" such as railways, bells, sighs, creaks and whistles, but they're all set in service to the music. It's one of the best engineered albums I've heard - everything is just so. I wish I had a better stereo system on which to hear it. Initially, some of the later tracks outstay their welcome (especially if you have to download them on 56K) but sooner or later you'll find that they've all got under your skin. It's a privilege and an education to hear music like this, something I would probably never have bought in a shop because there's always a risk of wasting my money - you may know the feeling. Now I know what this is like, I feel like buying some. Have a listen and see what you think, but remember to give the album time to grow on you - just like a cactus...

Recommended tracks: Rápido, Oeste, Canción De Cuna. (Sorry, no individual links this time.)

But the album (& tracks) is hosted at the wondrous Thinner netlabel: Alta Infidelidad - Cactus Y Volcanoes