It’s easy to step back in awe when hearing a release that covers so much electronic ground, from cutting-edge cut-up digital distortion, to warm analog melodies, to video-game noise. The album opens with “Alternating Bit,” an ominous intro that keeps a rising crescendo going for the entire length of the track, not serving to build up the climax of the track itself, but to build up to the mind-numbing tracks that follow. “Syntax Tree” and “Breakpoint Envelope” are pure digital swordplay that keep you moving. The title track slows down for an incredible analog melody that alone would be genius, but with the added digital double-takes it becomes a new pioneering style that has been copied even on a recent high-profile Warp Records release.
While the first two-thirds of Geometry is stunning, the final few tracks seem to touch ground Jega covered earlier in the album. They are not bad tracks, but the excitement created by the start of the album does not carry through to the end. They certainly fit within the frame of the album as a whole, which thematically is more consistent than his prior album Spectrum (Matador US, Planet µ UK).
TRAINSPOTTER’S NOTE: There are advance copies of Geometry floating around that have different versions of some of the tracks. “Doric,” an amazing highlight from the regular release, was originally titled “Angular Momentum” and did not have the chaotic video-game interplay. “Alternating Bit” also is missing its dark intro (a lesser track as a result). Although fun for comparisons and completists, it’s the final released version of the album that best reflects Dylan Nathan’s hard work to keep his own style while creating a brand-new sound.
