Lux Rec has never stuck to one style. The label has blatantly ignored trends and in so set a number of them, the rise of EBM tinged techno and darker tones for example. This latest set maintains that “backroom” feel, that underground other that Cosmo and Faber have been cultivating now for almost ten years. And with this, there is another element entering with these 12”s, a willingness to explore more abstract concepts and allow the palette to expand further as musicians bring spoken word and new dynamics to the table.
“Ya heard the new one on Lux?” Chris, of WE FORFEIT fame, asked me last month. “Yeah? Really?” It can be good to have more than one set of ears when it comes to music. Somehow not one but three 12”s had appeared on the seminal Swiss label and totally passed me by, how this happened, as I had been looking forward for months to seeing Savage Grounds and Daniele Cosmo here in Madrid, I cannot explain. Nevertheless, wrongs can be righted and that’s what we are here to do.
Veil of Light / Sleep Forever :: Apnea / Deter
The trio of releases focuses on talent from the imprint’s home country of Switzerland and up first is an interesting split, an artist showing two sides of his own sound. Veil of Light have risen in prominence since their first cassettes on the excellent Beläten. Since then this forward looking synth musician has become a firm favorite of the likes of aufnahme + wiedergabe and AVANT!. Three tracks of varying intensity are the offering, the first being the distant and lovelorn “Fact.” Soaked in the traditions of the heart-shredded ballad, thick beats and kickdrums form the basis for a lilting melody as vocals etch out a life of loss and longing. “Some Blood” adopts a more noticeable EBM tone. Stabbing synthlines are countered by playful percussion as lyrics bite in a haze of static. “Bodily Integrity” shares the same intensity, bold bars bolster by the crack and crank of an industrially fuelled rhythm. Turn over to find a fresh moniker, Sleep Forever. Although the triumvirate on offer vibrate with the same energy as the A-Side, a different style is on show. Brash chords are smashed with a tight snare in the imperial march of “Basalt”, a work whose daring keys demand attention as they cut a stark and strident sound. Sleep Forever’s style can be characterized by its overarching influences of new beat, the catchy hooks and absorbing melodies rinsed by the clatter of machine gun drum patterns. Alongside this nod to Belgium is a confidence, a directness and bravery that pulsates in “Rinse” but come to a head in the defiance and swagger of “Triad.”
S S S S :: Systemic Suspense
S S S S is another native of Switzerland and lends something different to Lux for his debut 12”. Despite also having featured on aufnahme + wiedergabe, the music moulded by Samuel Savenberg contrasts with that of fellow alumnus Veil of Light. The title piece, “Systematic Suspense”, is a cold and complex piece of assembly rhythms and echoed abandonment. That tone changes as the EP develops. “Motion” toes a similar factory line but allows a human element to rise, bittersweet notes sailing above the earthen drums. “The Weight” is a more reduced encountered, as is “Disembodied, with Savenberg withdrawing into ambient territory to dab in warmer more muted textures. “Arson” reflects the “Systematic Suspense” in one breath while adopting those same understated elements of “The Weight” and “Disembodied.” Unsettling keys haunt in a wide gulf of echo and delay, lone drums fading into insignificance in the gaping expanse. Only in the latter stages do those drums gain some solidity, a steely thump being driven into that disconcerting and ghostly cavern.
Wavering Hands :: Vulture
The latest 12”, just now hitting shops, comes from a new entity and marks a return to a certain style for Lux. Wavering Hands, also from a country famous for clocks and financial institutions, comes from a more wave angle than his recent predecessors, calling to mind the likes of Momentform or Cold Colors while exploring moodier tones. The brooding “Trap” opens the release, deep bass strings hemmed in by a steady beat and distant vocals. “Water Signals” is a similarly removed piece, lyrics being extricated to allow sombre keys to penetrate further. Other works from the new comer show another side of his sound. The “Synth Edit” of “Wire” is offered and courses with a raw emotion that characterised early synth groups of the 1980s. And like his 80s counterparts Wavering Hands has all the attributes of an artist rooted in the traditions of post-punk, an artist who has adopted machines to bring an even more vivid and visceral edge to his music. Arguably the two most uplifting offers have the darkest titles. The words of both “Void” and “Vulture” are ribboned with pain and sorrow, but behind this lines of lamentations are warm chords that caress and sooth those open wounds.
Lux Rec has never stuck to one style. The label has blatantly ignored trends and in so set a number of them, the rise of EBM tinged techno and darker tones for example. This latest set maintains that “backroom” feel, that underground other that Cosmo and Faber have been cultivating now for almost ten years. And with this, there is another element entering with these 12”s, a willingness to explore more abstract concepts and allow the palette to expand further as musicians bring spoken word and new dynamics to the table.
All three releases are available on Lux Rec.
