Category Archives: Switched On

Switched On – BUNKR: The Initiation Well (VLSI)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

BUNKR is the operating name by which Brighton’s James Dean operates. Before we even hear his music a strong impression is created by the bold cover, which promises discovery, scope and bright light amid dark clouds, not to mention a hint of danger.

The Initiation Well, as Dean puts it, ‘provides the listener with an intrepid exploration of the BUNKR sound world. It’s melodic, pretty atmospheric and a little bit woozy’.

What’s the music like?

As BUNKR describes. Headphones are the best means of discovery here, allowing the listener to take in the widescreen sonic views BUNKR creates on substantial tracks like Docking Procedure, The Initiation Well and Rheasvilian Lakes.

East Of Eden would seem to represent the star at the centre of the album cover. Try listening as the sun comes up and you are in for a magical experience, as it also acts as an upbeat for the kick drum of Docking Procedure, where a lumbering groove and slightly cosmic treble work really well together, and the layers of different textures and loops build up beautifully.

Left For Dust picks up speed and adds a lovely fuzzy bass to go with its busy drum track, and then Rheasvilian Lakes is a lovely floaty number, stretched out as our view disappears into the distance.

Does it all work?

Yes – the tracks work individually but the album works even better as a whole. If anything James Dean’s work here could be compared to that of his label heads, Echaskech – finely crafted pictures where the imagination is left open, though his beats are a little more dub-weighted and a bit slower.

Is it recommended?

Absolutely. This is a versatile album that works on the morning commute and during work but also as a body of work to admire and – in the faster tracks – throw a shape or two. The Initiation Well is an intriguing title that draws you in – and once initiated you’ll want to be submerged again!

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Switched On – Dominik Eulberg: Mannigfaltig (!K7)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Few musicians can claim to have received an ‘Outstanding Contribution’ award from the UN Decade of Biodiversity.

Yet as you soon find out from the packaging around this release, Dominik Eulberg’s Mannigfaltig is not just any other project.

It is a musical and artistic plea for recognition. Recognition that although we are custodians of some weird and wonderful species here on earth, we might not be for too much longer if things don’t change.

A multi media release, Mannigfaltig (meaning manifold, diverse) combines twelve musical portraits of colourful species with a pack of cards featuring a pair of each of those animals, and an intricate video – another award winner – paying homage to the colourful mayfly on the single Eintagsfliege. The cover art is beautifully realised too, the animal portraits laid out in the shape of a ‘play’ symbol. Eulberg may have been eight years away from the albums game, but he has clearly given his return some thought.

What’s the music like?

Eulberg’s work is of intricate construction but colourful output, rather like the species he portrays.

If you were listening without any knowledge of the album’s subject, you would pick out the opening Eintagsfliege, the Mayfly, as a sublime sunrise moment. Eulberg uses the rich timbre of the lower register of the piano to make a piece of music that stops the listener in their tracks, especially once the clipped beats kick in.

As the album progresses, and Eulberg profiles moths, butterflies, birds and dormice, the little twists and turns make for a really substantial set of tracks. After the beautiful mayfly, Zweibrütiger Scheckenfalter (Meadow Fritillary) has a wavy profile with a glockenspiel at the top end, a tactic Eulberg often employs. Fünffleck-Widderchen (New Forest burnet-moth) plays subtly with the pulse, using some darker shades, while another moth, Sechslinien-Bodeneule, puts its foot down. Siebenschläfer (Dormouse) comes out as a persuasive anthem in waiting, a feel good moment, while Goldene Acht, a pale-clouded yellow butterfly builds its layers to a rich swathe of colour.

As the album moves on the music gets weightier. Neuntöter, a Red-backed shrike, brings out the heavier gear, and then the really substantial Zehnpunkt-Marienkäfer, at 11 minutes, its blissful, warm chords backing another clipped beat glockenspiel, ending in suspension with the delicacy of the chimes.

Does it all work?

Yes, and despite the album’s length it has enough light and shade, fast and slow, to work. The craft behind the music is considerable, but so is the emotion, Eulberg using harmonies that pull gently but insistently at the heartstrings. Throwing in a few genuine anthemic moments at the end with tougher beats completes the deal.

Is it recommended?

Yes – another very fine addition to the Dominik Eulberg discography, Mannigfaltig is his most meaningful album yet, and contains some genuinely memorable music.

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In concert – Max Cooper: Yearning for the Infinite

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Max Cooper: Yearning for the Infinite

Part of the Barbican’s 2019 season, Life Rewired, which explores what it means to be human when technology is changing everything.

Barbican Hall, London, Saturday 28 September 2019

Written by Ben Hogwood
Images courtesy of the Barbican: Alex Kozobolis

How do you capture the infinite in music? Composers through the ages have come close – Bruckner, Mahler, Wagner and Messiaen come to mind, as does Morton Feldman and, more recently, the Indian classical music greats.

That may be a relatively casual list of ‘big dimension’ composers, but it gives an idea of the task facing Max Cooper, responding to the Barbican’s commission to ‘capture the overwhelming vastness of infinity within the spaces of the Barbican Hall’.

Incredibly, Cooper succeeded. His means were clever, too, exploring the infinite possibilities of data and science through tiny building blocks that combined to make cavernous structures to which we could easily have listened all night. For this he drew on his experience and knowledge of computational biology, for which he has a PhD, and made this potentially tricky area of science wholly approachable to the more casual Saturday night concert goer. To do this he added genuine emotion to the more calculated cells, drawing on historical religious traits which added even greater weight to the concept.

The music would not have made such an impact without the visual counterpoint, whose impact could not be overestimated. Jessica In (channeling Roger Penrose), Andy Lomas and Memo Atken all achieved the admirable balance of covering their brief, complementing the music and taking the breath away with the originality of their projections, which used two-thirds of the Barbican Hall walls and ceiling, creating a true 3D experience. Nor was the music lacking in emotional substance, Cooper having created a score of vast possibilities but also, in its quieter moments, of great intimacy.

This was borne partly of thick, semi-ambient chords with consonant harmonies but also melodic cells that grew outwards in tandem with the images, sweeping towards a conclusion where it felt as though all the positive energy in the hall was heading towards the feet. When the music did cut loose with powerful four to the floor rhythms it was all we could do not to get up and dance – a few did – though the complexity of the following breakbeat section would soon have placed us out of our collective depth!

It was that sort of evening, awe-inspiring, intimate, emotive and powerfully primal by turn. The modesty of Cooper’s bow at the end spoke volumes, showing that he sees himself as a channel through which this breathtaking art can flow. Yearning for the Infinite is due for an album release in November, and if it replicates this night then it will be essential listening. For now this evening was another feather in Cooper’s increasingly colourful cap.

Switched On – Telefon Tel Aviv: Dreams Are Not Enough (Ghostly International)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

In the 2000s, Chicago-based duo Telefon Tel Aviv were highly regarded for their moody electronic music, notable for its wispy vocals and expansive panoramic views. Three high quality albums were released in that time, peaking with Immolate Yourself in 2009. Almost immediately following the album release however tragedy struck, with band member Charles Cooper unexpectedly passing away.

The surviving member Josh Eustis continued in a solo capacity under different aliases, exploring new ground with Puscifer, The Black Queen and striking solo project Second Woman, while briefly appearing as part of Nine Inch Nails’ touring line-up. Then he announced work on new Telefon Tel Aviv material, to the delight of the band’s still devoted fan base – and with Dreams Are Not Enough he releases their fourth album.

Its track titles link to describe a dream Eustis experienced at an early age. I dream of it often…a younger version of myself…standing at the bottom of the ocean…arms aloft…mouth agape…eyes glaring…not seeing…not breathing…still as stone in a watery fane.

What’s the music like?

The nine tracks unfold as a dream sequence might, staying true to the Telefon Aviv sound but if anything branching out towards more experimental territory. I dream of it often makes a really ear-catching start to the album, arriving by stealth as a reverie might, but gradually imposing itself with rhythms that ricochet and echo, the sound waves bouncing off the walls. The sonic panorama is vast, and captivating when heard on headphones, Eustis using drones that are incredibly comfortable on the ear but then blossom into something more substantial.

He continues to shift the sonic perspective, sometimes up close and very personal and then suddenly cutting away to a vast oceanic view. When he does this for standing at the bottom of the ocean, mouth agape or especially eyes glaring the vocals sound like ancient plainchant, the setting a vast underwater cathedral, the beats now resonating around the windows and arches.

There is perhaps inevitably a sense of sadness on the album, remembering Cooper, but there is an incredibly strong resolve too. As it progresses the vision of the recurring dream continues to be remarkably descriptive. Not breathing hammers home its heavy kick drums, as though the heart is struggling to cope, but when final track still as stone in a watery fane arrives there is a lasting peace, Eustis completing his cathartic journey.

Does it all work?

Yes. Electronic music is rarely as moving or as distinctive as this, and although Dreams Are Not Enough is not always an easy listen, it is never less than captivating. Eustis has a wholly original way with beats, the corrugated surfaces on tracks like arms aloft borne of a vivid imagination. It is great to hear his vocals again too, and although they are disembodied at times they frequently strike a chord.

Is it recommended?

Without hesitation. While Immolate Yourself was dreamy and leaned more towards song-based productions, Dreams Are Not Enough feels like an important part of the recovery stage for Eustis, and it continues the story of Telefon Tel Aviv in a reverential way, never wallowing but seeking new sounds, methods and ways of communicating. Anyone who thinks electronic music is devoid of emotion should head right here.

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Switched on – Jas Shaw: Exquisite Cops (Delicacies)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

On the face of it, Exquisite Cops is a rare solo outing for Jas Shaw. One half of Simian Mobile Disco and a highly respected producer in his own right, Shaw is clearly capable of holding his own in a crowded field.

That, however, is only a small part of the story. Exquisite Cops has emerged from a period where Shaw has had to deal with a rare bone marrow disorder. It was diagnosed just after Murmurations, the last SMD album featuring the Deep Throat Choir, had been completed, and it meant their planned tour had to be ditched.

However Shaw is clearly one of those creative spirits who likes to respond to such a setback on the front foot, and while receiving chemotherapy he spent hours in the studio. Not only did he complete an album with Gold Panda as Selling, he made more than 20 solo recordings, which he has been releasing as singles and releasing as part of the Exquisite Cops project. This selection – a double album’s worth – is a self-picked ‘best of’.

What’s the music like?

Typically energetic, but varied too – Shaw clearly knows his techno, and as these eight tracks unfold we get a nice line in quick, pumping beats or softer material that nods across the Atlantic in the direction of Detroit.

Non-Caring Fabulousness starts the album almost lost in thought, with minimal treble but nicely paced, slightly darker material. Merely Bathing comes right out of that shell, with acidic bleeps betraying Shaw’s membership of Simian Mobile Disco.

Having heard two sides of Shaw’s solo personality, he cunningly blends them in the lush textures of Lecturing Birds On How To Fly, with upfront beats and woozy treble sounds that work across the stereo picture like a murmuration of starlings. This approach also works well for I Dream Of Meanie, Shaw adding a nice layer of white noise at the top to capture a bright, warm sound. Half way through a quasi-orchestral sound builds from the middle, suggesting Shaw might be familiar with Holst’s The Planets, and particularly the remoteness of Saturn.

Leaner textures are in play for Freedom For The Pike, which comes out fighting, heavy on the kick drum, and also the nippy Repeat Until There Is No More Other, a quick-fire track that recalls Plastikman.

The closing duo are both brilliant. Popes of Dischord is essentially a distorted set of bells over an energetic mid-range, building steadily over nine and a half minutes. It sounds a lot better than that in the flesh, and could easily work as a Chemical Brothers track. Finally A Bird With No Feet circles the listener’s head, working up a trance with its oscillating riff in a thrilling drive to the finish.

Does it all work?

Yes. Shaw’s ability to get even the stoniest cynic on the dancefloor with his music is well noted, whether in Simian Mobile Disco or in his own production work. Exquisite Cops is no different, and feels very natural – as though he has edited very little on the route from initial inspiration to finished club track.

This is an impressive achievement given that the gestation period for some of these tracks was months rather than hours. It so happens that Shaw has a great ear for spotting the compatibility of his ideas and blending them together.

Is it recommended?

Yes, strongly. The whole Exquisite Cops project is proof positive that good things can come out of awful situations, and that music is often the way to go for cathartic energy. When you listen to this it’s worth considering Shaw’s situation, and realising for a bit – in between dance steps – just how positive things really can be.

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