- It's hard to say why Binary Sequence chose 66/31 for the title of their first release, because the B-side, "Below the Ice," fits the mood of this 12-inch perfectly. Judging by the three tracks here, "frozen tundra bass music" is pretty close to the ultimate description for Binary Sequence's sound, a collection of tunes that have been touted as dubstep, but have little to do with the genre aside from perhaps the muted breakbeats that guide each track along their cold path. The genre that seems to make more sense is IDM—a comparison borne out by Binary Sequence's recent podcast for the label which sandwiched Autechre and Aphex Twin next to Brackles and Lukid.
Each track here drips with melancholy, the synths lazily plotting ways to make you cry while skittering beats try desperately to hold things together. "66/31"'s melody digitally quivers like the best of Telefon Tel Aviv. But while Tel Aviv often let warmth in to thaw out the emotional distance, Binary is content to play one emotion throughout their length. In the hands of a singular talent like Burial, this works fine. In the hands of Binary, though, it's less successful. The work here shows plenty of promise—the aforementioned "Below the Ice" is the highlight—but he still has more layers of ice to break through before he produces something truly hypothermia-worthy.
Tracklist A1 66/31
A2 Arc
AA Under the Ice