Torus - Feeel

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  • It was Torus who inaugurated Sonic Router Records and, after a string of leftfield curios from the likes of Hav Lyfe and Fuewa, it's Torus who returns for the label's sixth release. His self-titled debut EP was arguably the label's finest to date, showcasing a remarkably tender take on instrumental hip-hop that was not so much head-nod as nod-off. This time around, The Hague's Joeri Woudstra seems at least partially intent on upping the energy levels. "Elsewhere" even has a drop of sorts, a moment when its fuzzy pads disappear to leave a rounded bassline buzzing robustly; "Tribes," with its wailing sirens, sounds positively evil. Elsewhere, though, Woudstra remains on familiar ground. He has described Feeel as "an in-depth exploration" into the sound of his debut, and all of its defining characteristics—the faintly baroque melodies, shuffling found sound rhythms and crackly field recordings—are present here. But this time around, Woudstra's execution is more streamlined. The title track is a case in point. At the opening, its delicate organ-like chords are a muted presence, framed by a recording of creaking furniture and soft breath. From there it gradually opens out, spatially and melodically, reaching a graceful peak before the close. It's a formula replicated elsewhere—"Backyard," "Untitled"—and it was present on the Torus EP, too. But that record's moments of aimlessness were charming, the half-tracks that barely got going before they puttered out. On Feeel, Woudstra seems to know exactly where he's headed, and in that purposefulness his music has lost some of its appeal. A couple of remixes round things off. Kid Smpl amplifies the elegiac properties of "Untitled" to rather ponderous effect, and Rawdee's version of "Chopsticks" is an intoxicating new age cut-up, though it's difficult to discern what, if any, relation it bears to the original.
  • Tracklist
      01. Backyard 02. Feeel 03. Elsewhere 04. Untitled 05. Chopsticks 06. Tribes 07. Untitled (Kid Smpl Remix) 08. Chopsticks (Rawdee Remix)
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