Frisson is proof that Collingburn‘s years in the club scene weren’t wasted. He knows how to build tension, how to pace a track, how to let moments breathe. But he also knows when to pull back, when to let the ambient drift take over. For an artist who’s spent nearly two decades navigating the underground dance world and another stretch exploring pure ambient, Frisson feels like the convergence of both.
Ambient music with a pulse, and it works
Unruly Disturbance comes out with Frisson, and it is an ambient dream filled with drums that are not ashamed to pierce through when they need to. Tom Collingburn, the Manchester-based producer behind Unruly Disturbance, spent nearly 20 years in the underground dance world. Starting out as a DJ at 14, he went on to perform at festivals including Creamfields and Gottwood, as well as venues like Sankeys. He also worked as part of the duo Autophase, releasing big room techno and electro-house on labels like Global Underground and Curfew. But eventually, Collingburn shifted gears. He moved away from the dancefloor and toward ambient music, releasing Music for Scenes and Melodic Drone under the Unruly Disturbance moniker. Those albums were drone-heavy, long-form, and entirely beatless. Frisson marks a return to rhythm but not in the way you’d expect from someone with his background.
The album leans toward ambient techno with some great rhythms along the way. “Willows Lament” has a captivating flow and strong musical composition, complemented by powerful drums. The title track is also a great introduction to this sound. The production here on this track is astonishing, beautiful timbres, melodies, and little voices in the background. Collingburn really gets into details in this track, making sure every melodic space is filled and noticed. This was the catchiest piece of the album. Reminds me a bit of Burial and Lorn with the dark rhythm tones, and teases the listener with just enough and delivers rightly. The title refers to the physical sensation some people experience when listening to music, chills, goosebumps, the kind of response that makes your skin prickle. That’s what Collingburn was aiming for, and on tracks like “Frisson,” he nails it.
Mat Riches appears on three tracks—the opener, the middle, and the outro—to make his voice the main narrator of this release. His poetry recitations act as anchors on an otherwise instrumental recording, grounding the album in something tangible while the rest of the music drifts and shifts. Tracks 6, 8, and 12 are the most dancier side of things on the album, with 4/4 kicks and shuffled off-rhythms. It doesn’t make the listen boring and takes the listener on a journey here. The beats are subtle and considered, reintroduced after years of purely ambient work. This is the first time Collingburn has felt comfortable using them again, and it shows. The rhythms sit beneath the atmospheres rather than dominating them, which is a delicate balance that not every producer can pull off.
Frisson is proof that Collingburn‘s years in the club scene weren’t wasted. He knows how to build tension, how to pace a track, how to let moments breathe. But he also knows when to pull back, when to let the ambient drift take over. For an artist who’s spent nearly two decades navigating the underground dance world and another stretch exploring pure ambient, Frisson feels like the convergence of both. It’s ambient music with a pulse, and it works. Collingburn has spent two decades learning how to make people move and another stretch learning how to make them stop. Frisson proves he’s mastered both.
Frisson is available on Not Yet Remembered. [Bandcamp]
