Yage have taken a great bunch of pieces and turned them into something even more incredible, while scattering their own works (under the guise of FSOL) here and there.
The perfect combination of familiarity and innovation
As embedded in the Touched Music ecosystem as I may be, I must admit I’ve managed to let the Mind Maps series completely pass me by. Although firmly seeing the label as my current go-to for exciting and interesting new electronic work—maybe as a sign I’m getting older—I’ve definitely leant towards artists’ releases rather than compilations overall in most of my musical explorations, which probably explains why I stupidly didn’t realise the series’ existence.
I guess that really the allure and draw of someone as great and iconic as Yage should really have set my alarm bells ringing and this time around the broccoli has fallen out of my ears allowing me to realise all of my mistakes.
I absolutely had no idea that these were a series of mix CDs, and at the exact moment I came to that understanding I felt around 20 years younger. Not only was my CD shelf once full of more dance-oriented examples of the craft, but as I delved deeper into the landscape of cerebral electronica (and the internet) it became clear there was a plethora of self-released mixes by artists out there outside of what one could effortlessly find in a high street music shop.
With Mind Maps I’m once again reminded of the sheer beauty that can result from a skilled person (or persons) carefully curating a selection of wonderful tracks and seamlessly merging them together into a blissful experience. Yage have taken a great bunch of pieces and turned them into something even more incredible, while scattering their own works (under the guise of FSOL) here and there.
Some I know, providing fond memories of recent releases on the label I’ve had the pleasure of listening to—and some I don’t, triggering me to investigate further. Overall it’s the perfect combination of familiarity and innovation, providing a fresh take to things I clearly already enjoy.
Highlights for me are the inclusion of Autechre’s “JNSN CODE GL16” (let’s face it, they’re not that easy to integrate so hats off all around), the appearance of Serge Geyzel taken from his epic Xenophonic release and the scattered samples of answering machine messages here and there, including the unmistakable voice of the late Andrew Weatherall—I very much feel he would have approved and it’s a small but fitting tribute to his lifelong contributions that he is present and accounted for.
Notwithstanding the musical content, it’s a very attractive physical release too. Presented in a four-panel digipak, once again the artwork and design skills of Grid Pattern shine through and make it more than pleasant to hold in the hand and display when it’s playing.
In a time of stressful work and long hours, I’ve been reaching for this time and time again to let the hours pass and make it through the working week. Time flies when you’re having fun, and this is most certainly the quickest way you’ll get to 88 miles per hour this month. Fully recommended.
Mind Maps 4 is available on Touched Music. [Bandcamp]
