Koreless proves with Agor that he has become a master of his craft by exciting the listener with different aspects of sound design and structure. Unconventional in all the best ways. A future classic right here.
Traversing through deep-listening into club-ready dance signatures
The year was 2012 and I was attending a silent disco. In the UK, that sentence alone would certainly depict a freshers week at university. The combined fragrance of cheap lager and Lynx Africa, in a room full of neon and loony friends constantly looking at each other, headphones on, smirking like Cheshire cats. Fortunately, my experience I’m here to introduce this review with holds some weight—and may even come across ‘highbrow’ by comparison.
The venue was the Tate Modern in London, the lineup was: Koreless, Lapalux and Actress and the visuals were a Yayoi Kusama inspired piece to accompany her exhibition at the time. Plus if my memory serves correctly—it was free! This was my first ever experience of Lewis Roberts. A pretty hard moment to top until now.
Lewis Roberts (aka Koreless) returns with his debut LP Agor on Young.
Traversing through deep-listening into club-ready dance signatures, each track develops maturity that indicates Koreless did bide their time to ensure they were putting out something they were truly happy with. Where Agor stands strong is its ability to muster up the power of addictive dance rhythms in an otherwise beatless environment. “Black Rainbow,” attracts modern techniques with a personality that sits front and centre on a dance floor, but there is not a single kick or snare in sight. This no hesitation approach made in sonic direction continues throughout; a prime display of confidence is on track “Shellshock,” which holds the eternal suspense factor as the conventional ‘drop’ is substituted for an ever euphoric build-up.
You would be forgiven if you did not realize the lack of drums was even palpable, as the intricate synthesis during Agor in its entirety delivers all the rhythmic stabs and complexity that matches house, techno and various break shuffle patterns. The vocal work also adds a delicate layer of lead fused definition as well as openly warm pad moments. This is particularly attributable in the latest single “White Picket Fence,” where the introduction of each voice interacts with its surroundings to swiftly create a post-rave combination. Another highlight throughout are the several shorter pieces that serve as interlude or extended outro movements. Roberts is not shy to leave space in between some of the larger tracks with these spatial patches as it leans in as a cooling palette cleanser for the next string of events.
Koreless proves with Agor that he has become a master of his craft by exciting the listener with different aspects of sound design and structure. Unconventional in all the best ways. A future classic right here.
Agor is available on Young. [Bandcamp]
