Considered perhaps as a hybrid-electronic album with instrumental incisions, Micropangaea is an accomplished body of work that sparks several corners of the condensed, vibrant and textured space it inhabits.
[Release page] There’s an immediate wow factor embedded within these eight pieces of sonic delight as featured in the tantalizing world of Brendan Byrnes‘ Micropangaea—a kaleidoscope of surreal instrumentation which roots itself in the subconscious and elevates the senses. As most electronic musicians seek to cross-pollinate post-rock elements with IDM, Brendan Byrnes does more than just fiddle with synthetic processors, instead, there’s a focus on lively collaboration where instruments dabble with synths and various bits of data interact to create a surplus of intriguing music. The result is a focused, fuzzy and fun album that doesn’t wear its welcome. Sounding more like a well-oiled ensemble of chimes, bells, whistles, bleeps and horns, Brendan Byrnes pulls all the stops with Micropangaea.
Opening with the contagious bubbling clicks and sonic windows of “Trillopod” to the dynamic instrumental and low-key reflections of “Fluorescent Desert,” this album is a literal smorgasbord of delicious leftfield audio nuggets that doesn’t rely on any particular formula to tread its path. “Zibra Island,” delivers a swirling soundscape covering the entire percussive spectrum to include well-calibrated electronics, melody, harmony, field recordings, rhythm and an upbeat pulse meriting continual repetition—imagine a more playful sounding Clark infusion. “Eboa Ocean” breathes life into spatial debris, ambient swirls and drone-infested guitars that slows the pace of Micropangaea‘s buzzing production. “The Skies” could very well be “Eboa Ocean’s” long-distant cousin—it’s light ivory keys flicker amongst the stars in a pleasant if not brisk two-minute duration. The only track that feels slightly out-of-place is the prepared vocal inflections of “Vacant City”—a switch of gears that might have flourished better in a separate set of songs.
Considered perhaps as a hybrid-electronic album with instrumental incisions, Micropangaea is an accomplished body of work that sparks several corners of the condensed, vibrant and textured space it inhabits.
Micropangaea is available on Spectropol. [Release page]
