Norman Nodge - The Happenstance

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  • It's a pretty redundant idea to call something "heavily synthesised" in the field of techno, or any branch of electronic music for that matter. And yet, that's the phrase that springs to mind when considering Norman Nodge's work. His productions are often characterised by starkness, without a hint of warmth. Even more than that, though, they've never shown much in the way of emotion, as if inviting us to draw our own conclusions. "The Happenstance" is a weird little piece, with atmosphere generated solely by a trembling, uncertain pad. Above, droplets of acid splatter onto a canvas of tinny vintage drum hits. "Body to Body," on the other hand, replaces this elemental sparseness with constancy. A thumping kick and droning, faux-industrial bassline remind strongly of the tracks on last year's Fünf compilation. It's easy to miss the hidden subtlety—a melody composed solely of bass, which hugs the more repetitive bottom-end sequence tightly. At two minutes long, "Breakdown" hardly seems worth mentioning, but then, it's pretty quirky. Thick, bassy drums are juxtaposed with more of the tinny kind, while hi-hats chime in and out at very unexpected times, sometimes even truncating one another. Meanwhile, more acid pans rapidly from ear to ear, strange but pleasing. And that's probably a pretty apt summation for the release itself, too: strange but pleasing.
  • Tracklist
      01. The Happenstance 02. Body To Body 03. Breakdown
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