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Wauvenfold, "3fold: a compilation of three eps"
Clicky beats and pretty melodies collide in a collection of older EPs.
Tiger Style
One unfortunate by-product of exciting new music is that it generates a rumbling amongst its most ardent fans for a continued envelope push. With all the clamoring for newness and heretofore unheard sounds and effects from IDM's most avid glitch aficionados, the scene as a whole tends to skip over the here-and-now, focusing instead on whatever is next. While there's a glut of Boards of Canada cloning happening on mp3.com, there are also some really great examples available elsewhere of people who are stopping to smell Autechre's roses a bit while the boys themselves are time stretching digital flatulence ad infinitum. Wauvenfold's 3fold is a compilation of their earlier ep's, and it's certainly not going to excite people who are chasing the newest carrot. But I've been looking for more music like this; music that grooves, (albeit in a very digital way,) and that has just enough stuttering beats, filter-passed melodies, and time-warped textures to stay interesting. While this record doesn't congeal the way a singular album by the group might, it does offer an experience of their progression from stark, clicking beats where the focus is on rhythm to later, more multi-textured works that play more with space and depth. Wauvenfold work within a framework that has been established by others, but they hold their own. Song titles like 'Pixel Stitched' and 'Obliq Itch' should give you a rough idea of what to expect here: tweaked beats, simple non-linear melodies, and a dash of chaotic interruption that is typical of music composed in a digital environment; but it's all handled rather well. 3fold isn't the newest sound, but it's more of a good sound, and more of good is always welcome at my house.
One unfortunate by-product of exciting new music is that it generates a rumbling amongst its most ardent fans for a continued envelope push. With all the clamoring for newness and heretofore unheard sounds and effects from IDM's most avid glitch aficionados, the scene as a whole tends to skip over the here-and-now, focusing instead on whatever is next. While there's a glut of Boards of Canada cloning happening on mp3.com, there are also some really great examples available elsewhere of people who are stopping to smell Autechre's roses a bit while the boys themselves are time stretching digital flatulence ad infinitum. Wauvenfold's 3fold is a compilation of their earlier ep's, and it's certainly not going to excite people who are chasing the newest carrot. But I've been looking for more music like this; music that grooves, (albeit in a very digital way,) and that has just enough stuttering beats, filter-passed melodies, and time-warped textures to stay interesting. While this record doesn't congeal the way a singular album by the group might, it does offer an experience of their progression from stark, clicking beats where the focus is on rhythm to later, more multi-textured works that play more with space and depth. Wauvenfold work within a framework that has been established by others, but they hold their own. Song titles like 'Pixel Stitched' and 'Obliq Itch' should give you a rough idea of what to expect here: tweaked beats, simple non-linear melodies, and a dash of chaotic interruption that is typical of music composed in a digital environment; but it's all handled rather well. 3fold isn't the newest sound, but it's more of a good sound, and more of good is always welcome at my house. samples:
