Matrixxman (AKA Charles Duff) and Echologist (AKA Brendon Moeller) have a fair amount in common as two categorical shapeshifters. Techno and electro might have defined Duff's debut album, Homesick, but house and hip-hop are just as important to him. Moeller has also moved through dance music freely, but his Echologist project stays deep and dubby. Suffice it to say that the producers' collaborative EP for Dutch label Planet Rhythm is stylistically nuanced.
The Black & White EP doesn't sound monochromatic so much as richly greyscale. "Messiah" could be a lost Homesick dub, sharing in that record's desolate, futuristic sound. "Mainframe" is a deep acid cut that contains its 303 angst in one of Moeller's silky cocoons. "Turn To Stone" immediately kicks into peak-time mode, but the ambient synths that swoosh in effectively erode its stony facade. "Confidence," "Freeway" and "Trident" are the most streamlined collaborations, standing out for their slick functionality. "Bashar Al Assad" is the EP's most curious inclusion, with a polluted, claustrophobic atmosphere. Its rumbling bass explodes in the distance, muted to add some ghostly presence to the track's sense of dread.
The Black & White EP doesn't sound monochromatic so much as richly greyscale. "Messiah" could be a lost Homesick dub, sharing in that record's desolate, futuristic sound. "Mainframe" is a deep acid cut that contains its 303 angst in one of Moeller's silky cocoons. "Turn To Stone" immediately kicks into peak-time mode, but the ambient synths that swoosh in effectively erode its stony facade. "Confidence," "Freeway" and "Trident" are the most streamlined collaborations, standing out for their slick functionality. "Bashar Al Assad" is the EP's most curious inclusion, with a polluted, claustrophobic atmosphere. Its rumbling bass explodes in the distance, muted to add some ghostly presence to the track's sense of dread.
-
Published /
Sat / 8 Oct 2016 -
Words /
Holly Dicker -
-
-
Tracklist /
A1 Confidence
A2 Messiah
B1 Turn To Stone
B2 Mainframe
C1 Freeway
C2 Bashar Al Assad
D1 Time Loss
D2 Trident
Comments loading