In a slight winter surprise, our largest preview is not ambient, but electronic. Perhaps the winter release slate reflects a desire to dance the cold nights away, and to feel the warmth of summer in sweat rather than in sweaters. Beneath the drifts and layers the beat goes on.
This season’s listings are meant to resemble a club playlist, starting with downtempo, then proceeding through synth and swirl, and ending up in industrial and hard techno. We hope you’ll enjoy this sneak preview of the electronic winter slate!
Our cover image is taken from Pyur’s Lucid Anarchy, listed below!
Patient and measured, Trem 77‘s Vivid Vibration EP is more about the texture than the beats, creating a mood of active contemplation. As a New Year’s Day release, it operates as a resolution. Also downtempo, but not quite chill: Nightdriver‘s Enthusiastic June may seem out of season, but serves as a reminder of the warmer months. For those who can’t get away this winter, this EP may operate as a daydream (January 5). Balearic sounds inhabit Pockets of Light, a double album by Leonidas & Hobbes. One of the early singles, “Water,” remembers the destruction of Hurricane Ian (Hobbes Music, March 1). We’ve seen an inordinate amount of spring announcements already this year; one of the finest comes from Catching Flies, who fold a warm blend of strings, keys and beats into Tides. One of the reasons we’re listing it now is the track “Snow Day,” which is already available: a wise move, as this is the season for snow (Indigo Soul, April 5).
What is The Closest Thing to Silence? Perhaps it’s the sound of improvisors getting together, listening to each other’s ideas, and forging a unit based on mutual respect. Ariel Kalma, Jeremiah Chiu & Marta Sofia Honer alternate subtly between timbres, as modern composition and jazz can each be gleaned in these grooves (International Anthem, February 2). There’s a touch of jazz on Millsart‘s X-Ray Zulu, a dash of world beat. The four-tracker is the fourth in the Axis Expressionist series, which populates the dance floor with an intelligence to match its energy (Axis, January 24). Sax, guitar, cello, Wurlitzer, piano and … hoopoe? Dynamic combinations make C. Diab‘s Imerro an adventurous excursion. Recorded in a hot season but released in a cold one, the music sounds like a drift down an Amazon river, despite being recorded in Vancouver (Tonal Union, February 16).
Kurdish singer Hani Mojtahedy teams with Andi Toma of Mouse On Mars as HJirok, producing one of the year’s most intriguing blends. Sufi rhythms, setar melodies and modern electronic beats mingle as Mojtahedy sings in Persian and Farsi, lamenting the strife that has affected her native land (Altin Village & Mine, March 1). What are the chances that the season would see two Farsi-electronic releases? As Flower Storm writes, “when it rains it pours.” Daf, Tonbak and Santoor are featured on Do, along with the leftfield surprise of a Coil cover (February 2).
The ritualistic drumming of Jonas Albrecht creates a trancelike energy, and SCHREI MICH NICHT SO AN ICH BIN IN TRANCE BABY is awash in nuance and mood. The video, although tasteful, may require a parental advisory (Irascible Distribution, January 26). Jlin, Fennesz, Loraine James and more contribute to Moments Remixes, transforming Michael Vincent Walker‘s original album into something altogether new. The outlines remain legible, but the timbres have been transformed (play loud!, March 15).
No vocals, no drums, just pure, unadulterated synth. This is what Loula Yorke offers on the reflective, reflexive Volta, leading off with a beautiful title: “It’s been decided that if you lay down no-one will die.” The construction allows textural patterns to overlap and harmonize; as the artist proclaims, “Let the circle eat each other!” (Truxalis, January 23). Exactly one month later, Maya Shenfeld‘s Under the Sun is released, a complimentary yet very different synthesized excursion. Inspired by a passage from Ecclesiastes, partially recorded in a rock quarry, and dancing on the borders of drone, the album offers a richness of tone that mirrors the breadth of endangered creation (Thrill Jockey, February 23).
Out already on the first of the year, Build‘s Orienting Points begins with ambient glitch, but by “Run” has made a leap forward to propulsive beats. The cover image looks like a (real) burned CD (Audiobulb). The label will follow this with OdNu + Ümlaut‘s Abandoned Spaces, which merges the talents of the two artists to produce an ambient-electronic hybrid, with calm guitars (February 15). Neil Cowley completes his four-year Building Blocks project with installment six, alternating between pristine piano passages and bright electronic patterns (Mote, February 23). As The Who sings, “No one knows what it’s like to be the sad man …” except maybe for Sad Man, who doesn’t seem all that sad on Now, a popcorn bubbly synth trip bearing the rare “wonky” tag, released January 10. Maps‘ Counter Continuo is similarly perky and poppy, with euphoric timbres and body-moving beats (Mute, January 16).
An early announcement should be rewarded: Jacob Parke‘s video game inspired Disappointingly Bassic EP is out April 1, a fine choice for a fun release. The first single is Space Cadet 64 – World Record Nintendogs + Cats Speedrun July 2017. E-Saggila‘s Gamma Tag comes hard and swift, a reflection of a fast-paced society. The beats are large, occasionally fracturing into drum ‘n’ bass, like a sonic version of The Incredible Hulk (Northern Electronics, January 26).
If Pyur‘s Lucid Anarchy seems to travel a great sonic distance, it’s a reflection of the artist’s own journey, from Berlin to an Alpine village and back. Thoughts and travels coalesce into a miasma of sound (Subtext, January 12). Last year we covered Belka and Strelka from Brueder Selke; and now Laika gets her turn in the sun, as Julia Govor imagines traveling through the cosmos, her faithful companion at her side. From spacious passages to wild techno workouts, Laika and Ulka Were Here exudes a sense of caffeinated adventure (Semantica, February 16).
The Errorgrid label is knee-deep in its industrial strength Raw Øblations series. The first four installments are in the books, with sets from TL3SS and founder Nundale scheduled for January and February. Expect dark beats, moody textures and a dance floor flair. Jørgen Teller‘s Untitled (which IS a title!) is an experiment in percussion enhanced and abraded, an improvisation turned into a composition, a live performance sent to the studio. Post-punk and industrial influences shine throughout (Blundar, January 19).
Guatemalan producer Fer Franco makes a big techno splash with his debut album Ritos de Paso, joined by friends from multiple genres, who make the listening experience as vibrant and colorful as the cover image (February 9).Hard beats and a shamanistic sensibility decorate CAIV‘s Dwellers, a cavernous four-track release on the renowned Tresor imprint (February 2). bergsonist brings the beats on Avant, pulsing and pounding in the grand techno tradition (bizaarbazaar, January 5). Searing guitars, harsh electro and screams populate Gost‘s Prophecy, whose vivid cover art is an apt reflection of the apocalyptic music within. Not for the fainthearted! (Metal Blade, March 8). The same might be said of Shit & Shine, who embed video game beats in the chaos of Masters Of All This Hell, as if to wink at a knowing audience (Antibody, February 15).
Richard Allen
a closer listen 