- Splot further highlights Truss' penchant for imbuing hard-edged techno with an ornate ideal of sound design. "Auden" is the choice cut, a deranged lunge that feels like it's tripping with every frenzied leap. But there's also a distinct sense of space at work here. The kicks bellow sonorously and the chords feel like they're trying to scratch at the edges of the track, only getting more ferocious with each passing swipe. The title track, on the other hand, throws down a gauntlet of pounding drums and frantic chords more in the realm of his UK techno ancestors. Even here, however, the subtleties underline the brute force: distorted bass, splotches of melody and a bleep that sounds like it's rusting mid-song all provide something for your mind to grasp while he's beating the shit out of you.
There's also another dimension of Russell on show here: his MPIA3 project, where aggression is the sole deciding factor. Taking the (relatively speaking) pretty "Beacon" from the previous Our Circula Sound Truss EP, the MPIA3 rework is like a Sähkö record gone mad. Distorted kicks that would make Blawan blush thrash violently for six minutes with only the slightest hints of melody breaking through the squall.
Tracklist A1 Splot
A2 Auden
B Beacon (MPIA3 Definition)