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Traversable Wormhole’s Regions of Time is a trip and a half

Traversable Wormhole‘s Regions of Time is exactly the sort of thing I’m into these days: beat-heavy, deep-groove instrumental electronic music with an emphasis on long pieces. All of the eight pieces are longer than six minutes, with “Rotation Frequency” hitting the 7:33 mark. None of them have as much as a single vocal yip. This is full-on, large-scale, muscly, instrumental techno bliss.

These pieces all inhabit a similar sonic world, and as the band name and title imply, it’s a very sci-fi world. But this is not whooshing-space-ambient spacy. This is dense, punchy, hyperspace-intensity work. The low-end thumps are scrubbed of fade and often equipped with short reverb: in their ideal form, the bass hits on “Geodesic Motion” are like punches in the best of ways. The rest of sonic palette is rattling digital percussion, tightly-constrained synths, and careful melodies. Picking out individual tracks in this record is not as good as listening to the whole thing through in a row; I can tell you that “Massless Fermions” has a big ‘ol four-on-the-floor thump that’s particularly effective, but on its own it’s not quite as good as hearing it in the context of its prior and following tracks. The whole thing genuinely feels like traveling through space on a very fast ship toward an uncertain (but probably awesome) place/event.

Regions of Time is not an album that goes much for subtlety: these are big, powerful pieces that work a minimum of parts into a maximum of payoff. The album starts without much fanfare and ends suddenly; it goes full-bore for its full run-time, then stops. It’s an engine that’s either on or off, and it’s really, really good when it’s on. If you’re in for a 40+ minute ride into a deep, dark, sci-fi space, Regions of Time will take you there, no questions asked. Highly recommended.

Regions of Time is out November 15 on Sonic Groove Records. –Stephen Carradini

Premiere: Dances Across Borders, Vol. III

I’m really picky when it comes to electronic music. No matter what variety of electronic music it is, the work must balance the intentionally-repetitious grooves with enough variance to keep listeners attuned. Furthermore, the balance between texture and melody has to be spot on: too much texture and you get amorphous clouds; too much melody (at the expense of other elements) and you get thin tracks.

Dance Across Borders, Vol. III is a deeply impressive collection of techno cuts that hits the sweet spot where grooves, variation, melody, and texture come together–six times in a row. It’s the lot of most compilations to be wildly uneven, but curator Jean Grünewald has avoided that pitfall here. The results: all aces.

This collection is the third comp from Dance Across Borders, a “platform bringing together music artists against borders and state brutality, originally based in Montreal (Tiotia:ke in the language of Kanien’kehá:ka people) and now beyond.” Grünewald further noted that, “this project is to remind that this music, embodied in spaces, is above all political – and made to unite across all types of physical or abstract borders.”

The six pieces themselves live primarily in moody, minor keys, setting a unified tone for the collection. Opener “2 FRITES 1 COKE” by Esse Ran & S.Chioini (each of these six tracks are multi-artist collaborations) leans heavily into mood: subtle synth touches, carefully applied glitches, and meticulous arrangement of parts allows the techno piece to have a complex, forward-pushing beat and intriguing melodic elements.

“SPAZIO LIBERO by Kazuho and Ottoman Grüw opens by melding industrial clanks and groans into a pattern of dense thuds (a la Traversable Wormhole). A sudden, surprising shift into ’90s big beat vibes (without abandoning the dark’n’stormy underpinnings) makes this an unexpectedly diverse and fun piece.

The opening arpeggiator of “SCINTILLATION” by CMD & VIGLIENSONI makes a path into Tron Reconfigured vibes: this punchy track is equal parts “chase scene through an ’80s-style digital city” and energetic dance floor cut. “RETOUCHE” by Brusque Twins is a cold, stark cut that leans toward the industrial side of a techno/industrial mash-up. The breathy vocals and restrained arrangement keep it in the same mood as the other tracks, while the dour lead vocals push it toward the industrial side.

“Sublime” by LACED & NO AIRBAGS is my favorite of the set, as it matches rat-a-tat backline, four-on-the-floor bass hits, and ghostly synths for a piece that defies clear boundaries. The synths alone would be a lovely ambient piece; the rhythm and bass are highly busy and technical, almost footwork-ian. The tension is productive and exciting.

Closer “BUILT TO SIN” by H E L_H A X & 2 PIGS UNDER 1 UMBRELLA combines the approaches of many of the tracks into a solid closer. Distorted, ominous, industrial-style vocals sit over an adventurous techno cut that is equal parts Tron-style lucid synth action and Traversable Wormhole bass work. The piece flies by, barely letting the listener get settled in before its 4:00 runtime is up.

The six pieces here are all high-quality work. It’s rare that a compilation can produce such exciting and consistent work over so many artists. Furthermore, getting them all into a similar enough space that the collection is deeply listenable without massive tonal shifts is a triumph. If you’re into dark’n’stormy electronic music, Montreal Dances Across Borders, Vol. III is a must-listen collection. Highly recommended.

All profits from the compilation will be donated to Solidarity Across Borders, a Montreal-based non-profit organization that works to protect human rights. For those of you in Montreal, there’s a release rave-party in a church basement on November 18th. All the profits from that event will be donated to Milton-Parc food bank and to Solidarity Across Borders.

May Singles 1: Noisy

1. “Wonderful – Purist Mix” – The Fierce and the Dead. TFATD just released their first song with vocals, but they were kind enough to make a Purist mix that is instrumental-only for, uh, me. Thanks, y’all. The non-vocals version of the track modulates between being a dark, fuzzed-out ripper and an exploratory post-rock/jazz fusion. It’s an exciting track that shows off TFATD’s mastery of post-rock songwriting and excellent mix/master engineering. Highly recommended.

2. “Epigenesis” – The Kompressor Experiment. The Kompressor Experiment consistently does heavy post-rock really well. Here they pull back from some of the doomy thunder for a wider sonic palate, incorporating some screamin’ guitar melodies, piano, and generally less claustrophobic approach. But don’t worry: they still bring riffs. It’ll resonate with fans of heavy post-rock/post-metal.

3. “Machines” – EMÆNUEL. Takes the dense mood of bangers like Traversable Wormhole and strips out the force, replacing the thumb with skittering beats, microrhythms, detailed textural elements, and subtle dance overtures. It’s impressive alt-techno sonic sculpture.

4. “Reflected Sun” – Cliffwalker. Rad post-rock with gnarly guitar tone, delicate vibes (like, actual vibes, the instrument), and an atmosphere of total cool.

5. “A Beat for Peace” – Cemento Atlantico. You’ve heard a lot about Cemento Atlantico from me recently, and you’re just gonna keep hearing about it. This piece, a tribute piece with proceeds going to Ukrainian relief efforts, is a sinuous, winding, thumping work that balances acoustic and electronic brilliantly.

6. “Value Kit” – Halosar. Here’s a really pleasant cross between ’80s new age (a la Andreas Vollenweider), subtly glitchy idm, and vaporwave. If you don’t like any of those three things, though, this may be outside your zone. RIYL very specific sonic concerns.

7. “Uncanny” – Danny Villareal. Packs a lot into two minutes: alt-Latinx vibes, downbeat electro stuff, wiggly experimental stuff, jazzy rhythms, all sorts of things. Love it.

Premiere: Juffbass’ Monolith

When my reviewing took a big shift from folk-pop/indie-pop to instrumental music in 2018, I spent a good amount of time explaining that I had just gotten into new things. That was true in many genres: I was not really reviewing trance at that time, and now I have reviewed several of Traversable Wormhole’s works.

But it was not true about post-rock. I have been listening to post-rock almost the entirety of Independent Clauses’ existence: the first mention of the term is in 2004 (although I wouldn’t use the term that way now), and I covered my first real post-rock track in 2005: an early track by Industries of the Blind. 273 of our 3063 posts have the word post-rock in them. That’s almost 10% of our posts! That’s surprising even to me.

So, what I’m saying here is that I’ve listened to a surprising amount of post-rock over the course of this blog, but this is only the second post-rock premiere (and first full album premiere) we’ve ever done. Every day brings something new!

JuffBass’s Monolith is also something new for Juffbass. The solo outfit previously made post-rock only with bass guitar and percussion, creating long, shifting tracks that appeal to my sensibilities as a bass player and as a fan of post-rock. With Monolith, Juffbass has added electric guitar to the bass-and-drums approach, creating an album that pays homage to the soaring aspects of post-rock now available to Juffbass while not forsaking the subtle, nuanced takes of previous work.

There are, of course, two major schools of electric guitar-based post-rock: the slow/dark/heavy onslaught of Explosions in the Sky / Godspeed You! Black Emperor and the soaring/twinkling/major key rush of Lights and Motion et al. Monolith is on the soaring/twinkling/major key side of things. Yet Juffbass’s prior work in an unusual vein brings a unique sensibility to these pieces. While the guitars go suitably acrobatic and some of the guitar pedals/effects will be well-known to post-rock fans, a focus on bass brings a different vibe to the work. To accent the bass, Juffbass (generally) doesn’t fill out the space between the soaring treble and the thrumming bass with dense, mid-range electric guitar; instead, there’s just, well, space. The results are a wide-open, expansive sonic experience: there’s no clutter or claustrophobia, just parts moving together in a wide plain. It’s an engaging take on the style.

The guitar-heavy opener “The End of the Spectrum” suggests that Juffbass is very aware of the shifts in sound from the last album to this one. This is one of the few tracks that has prominent mid-range guitar in it below the lead lines, giving this a very iconic post-rock vibe and putting it at the far end of the sonic spectrum from his bass-only recordings in complexity. (Several of the tracks have counterpoint guitar lines, but less often does Juffbass go for chunky chords more traditionally found in the rhythm section of a post-rock band.) “Rooftops of Montréal” supercharges the cymbals to match a standout guitar melody, making this one a highlight of the outfit’s new sound and the record.

But it’s “Meet Me Where We Can Hear the Trains” that starts to show off what Juffbass’s vision can really be. “Meet Me” carries much of the pensive, slowly-transforming approach from the bass-only work into the guitar-and-bass space. The results are a subtle approach to a gentle groove, with the guitar, bass, and drums working together to create a uniquely evocative experience. Highlight track “Personal Reminiscence” is another example of this working perfectly, as punchy drums punctuate carefully-meted-out guitar notes. The contrast is perfectly landed, making for excellent listening. “Planes II” is a rework of an earlier bass-only track–even with added guitar, this one is bass-heavy and elegant. It’s one for the old fans.

Even though Juffbass has added electric guitars to the mix in this record, this collection of tunes still feels light and easy to listen to. The careful composition and unique mixing make Monolith a distinctive collection. Fans of big, light-dappled, splashy post-rock will find lots to love here, while also being treated to a novel sonic perspective. Highly recommended.

Monolith lands April 26, 2022. Check out Juffbass at SpotifyInstagram, and Bandcamp.

Montreal Dances Across Borders Vol. 2: Everything works

One of the great joys that Independent Clauses brings me is the ability to wander around musically and figure out what’s good in lots of different genres. In 2019, I got into the deep, dark techno of Traversable Wormhole. (Because I could.) That discovery took me down a path which led to the Montréal Dances Across Borders series. I reviewed the first collection of heavy, dark dance music in the series very favorably, and thus I am thrilled to hear the second collection in the series today.

Jean Grünewald, one of the curators of the project, explained that MDAB is “a series of solidarity compilations bringing together artists of ‘underground dance music’ in Montreal (originally Tiotia:ke in the language of Kanien’kehá:ka people). This project is to remind that this music, embodied in spaces, is above all political – and made to unite across all types of physical or abstract borders.” The solidarity aspect has a practical aspect: all profits of the compilations are donated to Solidarity Across Borders — a non-profit organization that works to protect human rights, active in Montreal since 2003, whose action has been intensified during the pandemic.

Intense is a good entry point into the music: these pieces are all in their own ways intense (except the closer). The genres here span straight-ahead techno, industrial, hardstyle and more; the throughline is that these are all nighttime pieces, primarily in minor keys. Opener “Irion (Live)” by HRT opens with an ominous blast of distortion cut through by complex bass kick patterns. Sounds reminiscent of hi-hats, various zaps, synths, and (eventually) snares slowly accrete to unexpectedly turn this into a banger of a techno cut–without ever losing the distortion undergirding it all. Follow-up “Rinçage” by LE SERVICE HUMAIN goes in the other direction, going minimalist–almost brutalist–in its stripped down core of polyrhythmic bass kick, buzz, and occasional other bits. These two show the wide range of the sounds on the comp.

Yet while these tracks are dark and intense, they only rarely dabble in machine-sounding industrial work. The closest is in the heavily reverbed percussive hits and distorted vocals of PULSUM’s “Demonic Nature, Depressive Misery.” Yet the four-on-the-floor bass gives it away as a techno track dabbling in industrial vibes and not the other way around.(The bio of LE SERVICE HUMAIN also references industrial, although their track here does not evoke as many sonic monikers of the genre as PULSUM’s.) “Red Wine (Live)” by AN_NA similarly dabbles in industrial vocal styles with dour, distorted contralto vocals, but the insistent hardstyle-esque backbeat and singable chorus again yank the sounds back into techno territory.

Given my fascination with the deep techno cuts of Traversable Wormhole, the standout for me is “Walk With Me” by s.talbot. This techno cut is sleek, punchy, and vibrant. The pace is quick without feeling chaotic, as the round tones of the leading synths and the distinctly chosen percussive sounds temper what could otherwise feel like a breakneck, out-of-control piece. Instead, it’s a demonstration of tight control of mood via subtle tonal choices. “Loki’s Flyting” by Inside Blur has a similar vibe, but with the restrictor plate taken off: this one relishes its existence as a techno cut and goes for it full bore.

Some more experimental cuts populate the back end of the record. “POLICE STORY (FEATURING SERIEU X) by HUMAN JUNGLE merges some warped ’90s big beat vibes with ominous, mumbled, distorted spoken word vocals for an unexpected experience. “10 Pixels” by K draws heavily from ’80s noir synthpop for its concept then merges it with Tron for fun. (It is a lot of fun!) “After” by Remote Access is a deconstructed techno cut reliant heavily on polyrhtyhmic snare programming and meticulously constructed atmosphere; bass hits come in sparingly, for release. Its unique approach is distinctive on the record; it’s a late highlight.

Closer “De L’Inconvénient D’Être Né” by DBY is the only track on the compilation that could be called dreamy, and the only one that even flirts with bright sounds key. (Is that … a major key?) As a result, the sounds evoke a heavier Ulrich Schnauss or Teen Daze. This track punches my buttons pretty strongly; I’m ready to hear a lot more DBY after this. It’s an excellent closer to segue the listener out.

Montréal Dances Across Borders Vol. 2 is an extremely well-curated collection. It displays a wide variety of sounds and approaches that all work together; nothing on this record sounds out of place or forced. Everything fits into the vibe of the overall set. This record has captured the energy and vibe of a great DJ set and turned it into a great album. Highly recommended.

Quick Hit: ^L_

_^L’s Cyberterrorism Will Unite Us is as dark and intense as the title suggests. The three dense, thudding techno blasts reference the grim video game The Last of Us, the very grim book and movie Gone Girl, and the strange (and potentially grim, given my understanding of the plot synopsis) Neon Genesis Evangelion. It’s not messing around: we’re going dark. But the melodic vision is as clear as the concepts are: fans of Traversable Wormhole’s punchy, heavy techno cuts will find a lot to love in the plodding thump and synth squalls of the title track, the ’90s-inspired speed of “We Live in the Universe of The Last of Us,” and the tension of breathy auras vs tight beats in “Neon Genesis Evangelion.” I mean this very favorably: It’s dance music for Dante’s circles of hell. If you’re up for some grimly enthusiastic work, definitely check out this EP.

Montréal Dances Across Borders, vol.1: dark, dense, punchy techno

Deep house got me into electronica in a serious way, but it’s Traversable Wormhole’s bass-heavy, staccato, punchy techno that captured my attention most fully. Montréal Dances Across Borders vol. 1 gives me more of that dark, dense, aggressive techno. And the album is for a good cause! Who can’t get behind that?

I don’t usually bring in the press verbatim, but I can’t do much better than this on the concept, so I’ll let collection curator Jean Grünewald (ottoman.grüw) take it away:

Montreal Dances Across Borders vol.1 is a collaborative album bringing together 10 artists of “underground dance music” in Montréal (originally Tiotia:ke in the language of Kanien’kehá:ka people). This project is to remind that this music is above all made to unite through differences, across all types of physical or abstract borders.

Although the tracks from this album will be downloadable for free, it will be possible for those who wish to make donations for Solidarity Without Borders (www.solidarityacrossborders.org), a migrant justice network active in Montreal since 2003.

Throughout the whole release, the music is dense, dark, and punchy, which thrills me. Opener “Nanobodies of Love” by CMD marshals buzzy synths and dry percussion against thudding bass hits and a siren-esque lead synth. It’s excellently crafted, making the most of every sound to create atmosphere. It’s got hints of cyberpunk, hints of minimalist techno, and more. It’s a perfect opener. “Zone Chaude” by Tourment is a fun, EDM-influenced track, moving swiftly on thrumming arpeggiator-esque rails and phased synth wails that evoke club house. There’s still an undercurrent of ominous cyberpunk vibes, but it’s got some more fun in its veins. ottoman.grüw kicks up the pace with hardstyle-influenced techno cut “The Sound of Joy Is Enlightenment”. It’s all big, speedy bass hits and wiggly noises above it, aside from the spoken-word sections accompanied by ambient squiggles.

FXBIP’s “Expectations” is a bit more maximalist, stacking layers of percussion and synth to create a big, dark, exuberant sound similar to the work on Daft Punk’s Tron soundtrack and remixes. Spraelle’s “Hankering,” one of my personal favorites on the whole album, has the maximalist cyberpunk high drama vibe as well. The melodies are excellent and memorable. Honeydrip’s “Criticism Again” is a bit more abstract, focusing on syncopations, bubbly sounds, and tiny vocal samples to create a pleasantly stranger sonic palette within the overall landscape of dark’n’tense. “Expanding Uncertainty” by Aquaventure keeps the thumping beat but layers tense, brittle synth washes over it. The title is an accurate description of the mood the song creates.

This is big, bold, interesting electronica that focuses in on varieties of dark techno. The comp doesn’t have any clunkers on it at all, which is a huge achievement. This is an excellent release that techno fans should seek out immediately. Highly recommended.

Quick Hit: Emotional Ty

I’ve been getting into real deep cut techno, with Traversable Wormhole as my guide star. Emotional Ty‘s Roses and Aliens EP is a four-song 12″ vinyl release that traffics in straight-ahead techno bangers that is less foreboding and more slinky than Adam X’s output. Closer “Edge of the Horizon” is the highlight here, as Emotional Ty uses a warm, thrumming bass line and panning synth to imbue the most sense of personality of any of the four-on-the-floor bangers here.

“Mountains and Rivers” is a busy, skittering, percussion-heavy track with a ghostly sample of Anna Kendrick’s “Cups” for fun, while “Dream Journal” includes a spoken-word clip that adds a mysterious and emotional quality to punchy work. “Body Meridian” puts its head down and gets to work as a midpoint between dreamy post-dub and thumpin’ techno of the other three cuts–this would be a good transition piece for a DJ set. The four tracks here are all really solid, easily enjoyable techno cuts, and I look forward to more work from Emotional Ty.

May Singles, but make it June

1. “Mission Plan” – Matthew Shaw. Shaw’s electro-pop is in fine form here, relying on distorted bleeps and bloops to convey his evocative, emotive vocals. There’s a new sense of forward motion in this track, despite lyrics as frustrated with modern life as ever. There’s even a “doo-doo-dooooo” outro vocal line. Getting positively thrilled there, Matt! Highly recommended.

(Ed. note: I can think of few ways to better celebrate the 17th birthday of this humble little blog than to feature an artist that I first covered in 2004, only 18 months into the life of Independent Clauses. Thank you to everyone for the last 17 years.)

2. “Blown Up” – tg. When I learned that tg was in Harlem Shakes and helped create one of my favorite indie-rock songs of 2009, I was intrigued. When I found that tg (aka Todd Goldstein) is now purveying Steve Reich-ian electronic dance music (which is now pretty much what I want to listen to all the time), I was absolutely thrilled. “Blown Up” is a mesmerizing track full of round sounds and pitter-patter arpeggios. The bass is low in the mix, almost hidden, as the hypnotic treble lines take full focus. It’s a brilliant, immediately-charming first impression from Goldstein. I’m in love. Highly recommended.

3. “All Power for Women” – ^L_. The title is affirming and supportive. Everything else about this heavy, harsh techno cut is not. This falls in the vein of Adam X’s work with Traversable Wormhole: thumping bass hits, lots of forward motion, very little melody, very little atmosphere, lots and lots of attitude. It rips.

4. “A Sunset But Farther Away” – Yesterday and the Undoing. An acoustic guitar and wordless vocals form the entirety of this piece; the wordless vocals accentuate the yearning feel of the chord-based guitar work. In these times where so much is happening and yet I feel I have so little to helpfully say, a wordless piece expresses a great deal for me.

5. “I Drink Too Much Vermouth” – Chaperone Picks. If we’re going to be doing quarantine albums, of course there will be one from Chaperone Picks. The lo-fi wizard of Minnesota has 10 more lo-fi, four-track candies for fans of the form. The upbeat “I Drink Too Much Vermouth” opens up the record with a confident statement of CP’s style: an expert’s touch at off-the-cuff instrumental performances and tossed-off lyrics that stick, in and out of context.

6. “Distantimacy” – JPH. This 21-minute piece is somewhere between ambient, found-sound, and outsider composition. It relies heavily on loops of vocal, textural, and instrumental elements, creating a space that’s not quite as all-encompassing as a drone, more spiky and gappy than an ambient piece, and heavily ostinato (like Steve Reich, an influence of JPH’s). A true experience.

7. “Diamonds and Gold (Instrumental)” – The Gray Havens. Just like Josh Garrels went and released instrumental versions of all his records, TGH has given their catalogue the vocal-less treatment. This wordless version of my favorite TGH electro-pop jam accentuates aspects of the arrangement that are lost in the euphoric vocal performances: some intriguing guitar lines, lovely accent synth lines, and more. Way fun. Can’t wait to listen to the rest of their discography like this.

8. “Yugen” – Home Brewed Universe. Prolific musician Arka Sengupta (Home Brewed Universe, Mixtaped Monk) has made a giant leap on this track. His guitar-led post-rock meshes its many parts brilliantly here: lead guitar lines fit with drums, piano, and synths to create a dense track with a strong mood. Sengupta is growing into a strong, evocative songwriter right before our ears.

9. “Strength” – Dan Drohan. Zipping, zooming, booming, crashing sounds all merge into a semblance of a groove by the end of this experimental track from percussionist Drohan.

10. “Manhorse” – Husbands. The peppy, garage-y indie-rock here is great, but the video from Lamar+Nik is particularly cool and noteworthy. Using an old-school technique called “scanimation”, they put a unique twist on a video. It culminates in one of my favorite approaches/images: light/images being superimposed on people’s faces. Just a good all-around piece of work.

Quick Hit: Tom Hades

Tom Hades‘ Parade of Planets EP is a perfect follow-on to one of my favorite releases of last year: Traversable Wormhole’s Regions of Time. Both have a sci-fi theme and both love pounding bass in their tough, punchy techno cuts. Hades’ “Sadr” is a no-nonsense techno banger, throwing down bass hits like punches (my favorite way) and accentuating with no-frills beats plus a small amount of swirling synths. This is body-shakin’ stuff.

“Nahn” gets appropriately spacey and tense before dropping into the heavy groove. It’s got lots of ominous, richocheting snares to keep the dark vibe going even in the groove. “Rigor” starts off with piano and pseudo-theremin, sounding very cold, distant, and properly like the dark between stars. It kicks off into a less-punchy version of Hades’ work (read: still very punchy) that has a rattling percussion line keeping the thing going. It’s a lot moodier than the previous two tracks, and the change of pace is nice. There’s a rework of “Sadr” by Oliver Deutschmann to round things out. Overall, a very solid release of some deep, heavy techno.

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