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PRESS:
REVIEWS FROM GROOVES MAGAZINE #17 www.groovesmag.com
VARIOUS ARTISTS
Shadowmath, Vol. 2
Fateless Flows Collective
Aside from the Plug Research crew, Los Angeles isn't exactly known as one of the hotbeds of experimental electronic music. But it's apparently bubbling under, judging from more than a dozen artists appearing on the second installment of Shadowmath from the area's Fateless Flows Collective.
As you might expect, such a large number of artists means a wide range of styles falling under the "experimental" rubric; luckily, most of the tracks don't strain too hard to fit the category. Of course, there are a few Warp clones as befits this type of compilation, with Zygote being the best of the lot, his monorail-riding "American Love Conspiracy" a dead ringer for something off Selected Ambient Works 85-92 . Elsewhere, Kathie Talbot lays a bed of Muslimgauze/Badawi Middle Eastern rhythms on "Blandula XT", but conspicuously overlays them with Hollywood-style strings, while the Luxury Tax's two tracks are even heavier, setting up in a zone between drum n' bass and full-on breakcore. Vic Hennegan's "In a Broken Heart," on the other hand is elegantly understated, its sleek synths joined by a discrete kick and rubbery bass line.
There are stylistic jumps from track to track, even by the same artist. Surface 10 Activity's "Only a World" is a snoozy mix of dark ambience and doomy voices, but "Birth-collide" is an awesome detonation of skittering beats, slightly glitched guitar, and mass electronics, heading toward the heights of some of Hrvatski's jaw-dropping work. See, there's hope for L.A. yet.
Sean Portnoy
TRACE ELEMENT
Human
Pure Tone Productions, Fateless Flows Collective
All manner of influences seemingly abound on the debut album Human from the Miami-based Trace Element project. Lead musician Henry Hsiao joins his trance-flavored sounds to darker Bristol trip-hop and the crunchiness of early jungle-inspired IDM, making use of contributions from violinist Laura Escude, saxophonist Jeremy Powell, and vocalists Eluv and Sara Marie Rauch. We are introduced to the group with the synth-heavy glitch of "Soft Insanity," setting up a tight, subtle pace that Escude's strings gently melt away on "March," bubbly snares rolling along separate paths and meeting up again. Rauch's opening turn as chanteust in "Let Me Go" adds the right note of sadness to its lyrics, while the warbling of "End of Summer" interplays Eluv's soft, electrolyzed crooning and Powell's sensual saxophone accompaniment.
Captivating dance-floor material, "Krunch" returns Human to instrumental work, jumping into a tightly programmed, nervous affair, one that is greatly aided by Escude's fear-laden strings, leaping into a head-nodding pace highly reminiscent of Photek circa- Modus Operandi . "Merce" mines the same vein of IDM influence, a brooding and bleepy Orbital-like piece, knob-twiddling veiled underneath nimble beats. Closing with the dramatic "The Day I Dread," half-mournful, half-sighing crooning gives the disc a delicate, Dead Can Dance cinematic flourish. There's nothing particularly cutting edge here, and that's a good thing: With the solid, inspired musicianship displayed by Hsiao and friends, Trace Element's Human becomes a highly enjoyable set.
Alex Reynolds
REVIEW FROM SOCAL.COM
Fateless Flows Collective Does The Math
Sergio Martinez, Socal.com Editor
Is anyone listening out there?
There is a bit of surrealist poetry plastered in the back cover of Shadow Math, the Fateless Flows Collective second compilation album. It’s inserted there it seems, almost as a second thought, along the track index. It reads:
“…Please calm our gray, zone our gaze, max our clout,
drown our stealth, quote our heights, tweak our maze,
storm our cache, stalk our prayer! Please command
our cyclone from your grave! Is anyone listening
out there? Should it matter to us?...”
I could easily answer the penultimate question: I certainly am listening.
A fan of electronica before the ecstasy days (and through out), I’m always in the look out for a cool compilation that doesn’t send you running from your bedroom to your living room to quickly change that awful track now blasting through your speakers which has nothing to do with the previous one.
In this, their second compilation, The Fateless Flow Collective have done their homework. Although the individual tracks vary greatly in style and composition, the overall feel of the tracks has been carefully screened so that the progression of the songs feels like… well, like a progression.
No more trance and mellow ambiance grooves mixed with pseudo techno synth-loop hell. This is one album where it is apparent that tracks were carefully hand-picked to add up to the overall experimental feel of this CD. That the name of the collective is so non-descript while being so evocative, only helps to get in the mood of the music contained in the album. Shadow Math is also a clever album title that somehow resonates with the IDM traces one can identify throughout the album.
Merits of the album are many. Unfortunately, some of them are also part of its downside. Many songs, while smoothly transitioning between separate tracks, sometimes fall a bit flat inside themselves. Some of them seem to be just pretty cuts of neat loops but fail to musically resolve the track all the way to the end. This is however, a solid enough album and with a total of 18 tracks, most any electronica lovers will have plenty to choose from regardless of their personal inclinations on this or that side of the electronica fence.
Most of the electronic artists participating are residents of the LA area and they are, in order of appearance: Indicia (‘rescue me’ interlude), Appogee (‘Coral’ and ‘KDOR mov.2’ from the album Unconscious Ruckus), Kathy Talbot (‘Blandula XT’ and ‘a conversation down’), Dream Electric (‘not the glow’ and ‘Super Robo Crunch’), Tripform (‘Silver Reflection’), The Luxury Tax (‘Hey You Get Off My Lawn’ from the album Eat Garbage and ‘Sex Machine’ from the album Rave Toilet), Zygote (‘American love conspiracy’), Surface 10 Activity (‘birth-collide’ and ‘only a world’), Constant Flux (‘City in the Cold remix’), Mr. Soon (‘Arcosanti’), Niture (‘xylophagous’), Vic Hennegan (‘in a broken heart’) and Subversive Element (‘diagonal’)
For further information on the Fateless Flows Collective go visit their site at www.fatelessflows.com or email them info@fatelessflows.com
Appogee :: Unconscious Ruckus (Kanpai, CD)
"...Unconscious Ruckus shines bright on its own, creating a style
that blends polished drum'n bass with sonic exploration. Filled with inspiring
lyrics, samples, and forward thinking musical collages, Appogee leaves
a trail that will certainly appeal to a wide audience willing to accept
a change of pace in the overly saturated field of experimental electronics..."
Pietrobot, Editor
(02.22.05) In the past few years we've witnessed an abundance of artists
blending real instrumentation with synthetic, electronic music. Within
these windows of inspiration comes the human instinct to immediately recognize
the beauty nestled between crispy beats and meandering rhythms. Artists
such as Bitcrush, Christian Kleine, Ulrich Schnauss and edIT have seamlessly
crossed the limitations of typical electronic noodling by incorporating
the soul buried inside their guitars and by utilizing voices (distorted
or not) within their emotional compositions. Accessibility has always
been the key with any musician trying to attain a broader appeal --this
is not to say that an artist must compromise quality in their creative
palette, but instead, they realize the significance of meaning and realization
of their sound. Such is the case with Appogee's debut release for Kanpai
Records.
Unconscious Ruckus opens with the aptly titled "Ep[i]phany,"
a breathtaking college-radio friendly piece where ethereal guitars are
smeared against uplifting lyrics, dripping beats and inspirational effects.
"Ntheme" takes on an encapsulating, unrelenting emotional journey
through reflective ambiences, subtle drum'n bass and drenched guitar moments
that inspire nothing but creative brain-juice. Elsewhere on Unconscious
Ruckus, subtle industrial-rock elements breath life into rusted machines
("Creeper" and "Y Illuminative"). "I'm Yours"
could easily be the favorite old-time melodic indie tune we used to request
at the local radio station while the edIT-styled funk-jazz of "This
Moment" blends instrumental R & B pieces with creative lyrical
splashes. The introverted ambient-chill of "Coral" has a nostalgic
flavor that doesn't let up, and it's at this time that we begin to realize
the substance unveiling itself on this album. "Kddr Mov.2" and
"Kddr Mov.3" could be considered broken mirror images that refract
skewed light through chilly Orb/777-styled ambiences while textured drum'n
bass highlights its counterpart, respectively. Closing up with "Meaning
of Life," time stands still and a contemplative mood sets the stage
for a three-minute break until Appogee closes up with a studio conversation
that was probably inspired during a jam-session where musical ideas bounced
around a 12-pack of Newcastle. Quite interesting, to say the least.
Unconscious Ruckus shines bright on its own, creating a style that blends
polished drum'n bass with sonic exploration. Filled with inspiring lyrics,
samples, and forward thinking musical collages, Appogee leaves a trail
that will certainly appeal to a wide audience willing to accept a change
of pace in the overly saturated field of experimental electronics.
Appogee's US-Tour starts March 10th (check the Appogee website for the
complete Tour Schedule. They will also host a *LIVE* performance on Digital::Nimbus
(Radio) --Friday night February 25th (mid-3am, PST) at KUCI 88.9 FM, Irvine,
CA.)
Unconscious Ruckus is out now on Kanpai Records.
Kanpai Website
Appogee Website
Reed Rothchild :: Five Oceans (Nophi, CD)
"...Anyone seeking out a soundtrack to accompany a long journey would
be wise to select Five Oceans, especially if the title track and "Last
Impression" will be connected to lasting memories..."
John Reveles, Contributing Editor
(01.21.05) From the initial opening crystalline shards of reversed pads
and an angelic choir on "The Loss and the Finding" to the last
droplets of ethereal strings and synths heard on "Last Impression,"
Jess Stroup fashions an enjoyable cinematic electro experience on Five
Oceans, his latest album recorded under his Reed Rothchild alias and as
a newly minted member of the quality roster of artists in the Fateless
Flows collective.
Midway thru "In A Sleep, In A Dream," the base of the rhythm
pauses to reveal a widescreen shot of lush chords floating above the clouds
that continue on "Airplane Sky" while "Holding Pattern"
ascends back down to ground level with a subtle approach. On "Five
Oceans," the lead melody mimics the wind combing the chords that
sway like the ebb and flow of the tides as the sunset melts into the horizon.
The short "Magnum Opus" gives us time to catch our collective
breath after gasping at the beauty of "Five Oceans" with warm
guitar licks muzzling against a gentle flickering moonlit rhythm. Sandwiched
between the busy city window watching electro of "Up Again"
and "Fading Out & Coming Back Again" is the sad-eyed melody
of "Wonderkind." "The Precious" shows the funkier
side of Five Oceans, if not for less than a minute. "Headache Lullaby"
sweeps the projectors clean for a clear focus on "Last Impression,"
Five Oceans' closing emotional high point that combines breathtaking strings
and synths the likes of which I have not heard since Moby's brilliant
but criminally hard to find Little Idiot album.
Anyone seeking out a soundtrack to accompany a long journey would be wise
to select Five Oceans, especially if the title track and "Last Impression" will be connected to lasting memories. I'm certain there will be many
more forthcoming with the next Reed Rothchild release.
Five Oceans is out now on Nophi Recordings.
Nophi Website
Reed Rothchild Website
Trace Element :: Human (Pure Tone, CD)
"...The physicality of the music is revealed as each of Human's nine
tracks gracefully unfolds, exposing a greater inner strength enriched
with digitally processed classical sensibilities with each animated movement..."
John Reveles, Contributing Editor
The liner notes of Trace Element's new album Human define the band's moniker
as "A chemical element required in minute quantities by an organism
to maintain proper physical functioning." In this case, the organism
is their passionately composed music, while the required element is not
so much chemical nor minute, but the human (hence the album title) presence
integrated into these studio recordings as well as their improvisational
live performances featuring the laptop acrobatics of Henry Hsiao and live
violin of Laura "Violentfingers" Escude. The physicality of
the music is revealed as each of Human's nine tracks gracefully unfolds,
exposing a greater inner strength enriched with digitally processed classical
sensibilities with each animated movement.
"Soft Insanity" begins with crisp liquid effects and lush chords
before a nice glitch groove is established, only to merge with electro
beats and dubby bass while an innocent melody toils in the cinematic backdrop.
The electro beats continue on "March," and with every passing
synth line and carefully crafted percussion effect, I begin to wonder
if this is what the last Future Sound of London album should have sounded
like. After the evocative vocal performance of Sara Marie Rauch on the
arresting "Let Me Go," the smoky jazz of "End of Summer"
introduces Jeremy Powell's sax, which performs an intricate seductive
dance with the expressive vocals of Eluv that flows with every step. "Miles
Away" brings back the dub electro vibe, complete with a pinch of
battle-style scratching challenging the sax out on the dance floor only
to let us decide the winner.
The head bobbing rhythm of "Krunche" that glides along silky
violin notes makes me think this must be where Trace Element let the improvisation
loose in their live set before cooling the pace down with the warm exotic
sounds of voice and violin performing another attractive dance in "Yin
and Yang." "Merce" brings the electro back for one last
dance with multicolored gyrating synths looping in and out of abstract
geometrical shapes that generate a cohesive form while the operatic vocals
of "Dread" gently close Human with a new definition of digital
arias that would bring a wide smile to Malcolm McLaren's face.
I anticipate that with Human, Trace Element will definitely appeal to
anyone looking for some original sounds, and most definitely win them
over with their live shows. Having recently joined the excellent Fateless
Flows collective, I'm sure this isn't the last we'll hear from them, and
I look forward to hearing more when it becomes available.
Human is out now and available on the Trace Element website (released
on Pure Tone Productions).
Trace Element Website
Pure Tone Productions Website
Violent Fingers Website
V/A :: Shadowmath (Fateless Music, CD)
"...Where Volume 1 primarily concerned itself with a self-described
pure dance culture, Shadowmath’s masterful track sequence explores
diverse electro styles ranging from chilled atmospheric midtempo grooves
to sweltering maniacal rhythmic experiments best experienced in one continuous
listening session..."
John Reveles, Contributing Editor
The Fateless Flows collective returns to follow-up their first compilation
CD, Volume 1, with the poetically titled Shadowmath. Where Volume 1 primarily
concerned itself with a self-described pure dance culture, Shadowmath’s
masterful track sequence explores diverse electro styles ranging from
chilled atmospheric midtempo grooves to sweltering maniacal rhythmic experiments
best experienced in one continuous listening session.
Indicia sets the mood with “Rescue Me (Interlude)” by bathing
its waves of vocals and synths with liberal amounts of reverb and echo
effects, much like a ritual cleansing before proceeding any further to
Appogee’s “Coral” and Kathie Talbot’s “Blandula
XT.” Next in line to seduce our ears is Dream Electric’s “Not
the Glow,” whose spellbinding collection of emotions appeared on
Igloomag.com as an exclusive free download earlier this year (and as a
result, many playlists, I’m sure).
Tripform continues the chillout vibe with “Silver Reflection”
before The Luxury Tax hints at the implied shift in tone with “Hey
You Get Off of My Lawn.” The distorted drums and disjointed chords
march diligently along until a voice declares “It’s time to
pick up the pieces” as if to signal the digital trickery that ensues
past the last half of the track and on to the intro of Surface 10 Activity’s
“Birth-Collide.” The Luxury Tax then makes another appearance
with “Sex Machine,” a torrential downpour of beats and samples
that moves with building energy and increasing momentum that gets filtered
thru a fine mesh of guitars on Appogee’s “KDDR mov 2.”
Constant Flux slows things down a bit for us to hear the mix of synths
and vocals on “City in the Cold,” only to have “Super
Robo Crunch" by Dream Electric bring back the days of breakdancing
robots popping to underpaid drum machines. The subtle jazzy elements of
Kathie Talbot’s “A Conversation Down” and Mr. Soon’s
“Arcosanti” signal another shift in tone back to where reverb
and echo flow like honey through the circuits that created them. Niture’s
“Xylophagous” flows right into Vic Hennegan’s “In
a Broken Heart” with shared visions of wounded emotions in various
stages of healing.
Subversive Element’s “Diagonal,” with its ebb and flow
of monstrous chords and funky drum loop could be compared to if Jack Dangers
theoretically remixed the haunted interlude from “Echoes”
by Pink Floyd. Surface 10 Activity closes Shadowmath with “Only
a World,” a reflective ambient soundscape of operatic vocals and
digital silhouettes all floating downstream as the Fateless Flows Collective
sail on to their next excellent compilation.
Shadowmath (V.2) is out soon on Fateless Flows.
Fateless Flows Website
Zygote/The Luxury Tax :: Current/Future Transportation (UTR/BCM, 7")
IglooMag.com has had this delicious piece of ear-wax (in the shape of
a 7" record) for several months and have finally taken the time to
give it the recognition it's been itching to receive. Seemingly out of
no where, we see two artists displaying a mixture of beat-infested electro
melodies next to distorted manifestations of darkness and confusion.
Pietro Da Sacco, Editor
Stephen Ruiz (aka Zygote) and The Luxury Tax collaborate to release a
touching split-7" of electro-transmissions with a small dose of malnourished
melody work.
Zygote's "Monorail" weaves a web of vocodered simplicity next
to rugged beats with a sound reminiscent to that of Toytronic recording
artist, Gimmik. Melodies are brushed against abrupt digital tweaks while
the overall structure transforms into an attractive piece of electrical
beauty. On the flip side, however, The Luxury Tax's "Van Conversion"
features clustered percussive highlights, stretched voices, and a decomposed
bassline that slithers from one audio-spectrum to the next. It's all featured
here on this hair-splitting, finger-biting split 7".
Current/Future Transportation is a vehicle that ruggedly travels from
space to earth in a matter of minutes. Ending almost as quickly as it
starts, it isn't too often that a 7" makes such an impact on ears,
heart and feet. With both artists based in Northern California, it'll
be interesting to see what these two up-and-coming musicians produce in
the future.
Notice: Zygote review analyzed at 45 rpm, not 33 rpm.
Current/Future Transportation is OUT NOW on UTR/BCM (see links).
Under The Radar
Budget Cuts Music
Constant Flux :: All Things Change (:/Run Recordings, CD)
"...All Things Change spans through a variety of styles from downbeat
loungy numbers like "Distorted Ripple" to the rather upbeat,
bass-infested fury of "Mercury Cocktail" where a chemically
charged melody is complimented by creative electro-breaks..."
Pietro Da Sacco, Editor
Doug Rimerman is part of the burgeoning IDM scene in North America..
hailing from Los Angeles, California, he manifests his experimental breakbeats
under the Constant Flux moniker. All Things Change represents the growth
in electronics where rhythmic melodies collide against abrasive and upbeat
electro-breaks. Waves of atmospheric ambience blend harmoniously with
structured beats and watery basslines. These are just a fraction of the
frequencies that one can extract from this impressive debut full-length
on :/Run Recordings. Constant Flux has also been featured on a wide variety
of Radio stations including KCRW (89.9 FM) & KXLU (88.9 FM) both in
Los Angeles where his live performances have generated quite a stir in
the experimental electronic music community. On February 7th (Friday night/Saturday
morning) Constant Flux is also prepared to perform live for Southern California's
Digital::Nimbus (Experimental Electronic) Radio Program at KUCI (88.9
FM, Irvine: 12-3am PST).
All Things Change spans through a variety of styles from downbeat loungy
numbers like "Distorted Ripple" to the rather upbeat, bass-infested
fury of "Mercury Cocktail" where a chemically charged melody
is complimented by creative electro-breaks. The title track ("All
Things Change") spreads a high-energy bassline next to subliminally
stretched robotic voices and gritty electrical frequencies. For a debut
release, All Things Change carves a direct slice through glitchy electro
and robotic breakbeats. While the music stands on its own, credit for
the artwork on this enticing Digi-Pack goes to Ray Noland; the live visual-work
for Constant Flux's shows are provided by Yo Suzuki.
Constant Flux will be performing live on Digital::Nimbus with a CD Give-Away
also planned for the evening of Friday, February 7th from midnight - 3am
(PST). Tune in live (or online) from Irvine, California at KUCI, 88.9
FM (a streaming link is also available for those outside of Southern-California).
All Things Change is out now on Run Recordings.
Run Recordings
Fluxgruv