The push-pull affect revealed throughout The Metronomical Boy, its polished facade, mild temper, evenly paced experiments and uplifting interior keeps Mint in top shape from start to finish.
[Release page] Holding the electronic torch firmly, Mint (aka Boltfish co-operator Murray Fisher) keeps his latest collection of audio work clean and vibrant. Equal parts Toytronic-inspired ambience, flickering percussion and technoid rhythms has The Metronomical Boy gliding through carefully explored symphonies. Catching eardrums with low-lying puddles of bass, soft instrumentation, soundtrack mysteries and carved melodies, all is well in the land of Mint.
While these precision (and at times erratic) movements touch the soul with sparkling tapestry, it’s more rewarding to see Mint keeping his composure and style from fading into obscurity. The years of surplus electronics can be a daunting task to filter through. This is an area that Boltfish have kept an ear on; vying for progress and nostalgia, their productions always ignite the past while etching new pathways to consume. The push-pull affect revealed throughout The Metronomical Boy, its polished facade, mild temper, evenly paced experiments and uplifting interior keeps Mint in top shape from start to finish. Swaying from left to right, these splendid retreats are counterbalanced above sincere bleeps’n clicks, both confused and clear in their construction. Not relying on preconceived notions of IDM’s fading mystique, these pleasurable windows of life dive straight into the fabric of yesteryear without losing sight of clean-cut production, solid mastering (courtesy of Ochre at Melograf Mastering), and a visual stimulus that just can’t be ignored.
On that note, there’s even a story behind The Metronomical Boy as described in the press-release:
“In September 1932 the Norwegian Archaeologist Tor William Gudmundsen undertook an excavation near the Kharga Oasis, Egypt. The tomb he discovered had lain undisturbed since the time of the Pharaohs, and its central burial chamber contained the sarcophagus of one of the Pharaoh’s sons. Alongside this knelt a mechanical figure, resembling a boy of the same age, clearly built as a companion for the Pharaoh’s son. The incredibly advanced, and perfectly preserved mechanism still functioned with rhythmical precision and the automaton smiled, and slowly bowed to greet the explorer. Confounded but delighted by the discovery, Gudmundsen dubbed him The Metronomical Boy. He took the boy with him, and in the weeks that followed observed the boy’s gentle nature and desire to learn. Returning home on his daughter Ina’s 9th birthday, Gudmundsen introduced her to The Metronomical Boy and a lasting friendship was immediately born. Ina took it upon herself to teach the boy whatever she could, and the pair shared many adventures from that day on.”
The Metronomical Boy is out now on Boltfish. [Release page]
