Here we have six most spectacular, head catching pieces of melodic, disjointed bass pumping tracks. Acidic, chaotic and pulsating with circular motion.
Acidic, chaotic and pulsating with circular motion
The funfair has come to my town this week. They’ve parked up on the field outside my window and so I am blessed with 90’s commercial dance hits, the smell of candy floss and the hot dog stand with the odd scream of the Waltzer’s MC “Scream If You Want To Go Faster” and “One pound per ride.” They’re quite literally playing the same music on the Waltzer that I heard last time I went on one in maybe 1994. It’s like they’ve opened up a time capsule on the field. I like it, but I can’t help reimagining the funfair with some more experimental music. I think it could work.
To block out the noises of the outside I put on the recent release by Melted_Self titled Distants and I try to reinvent my own personal funfair. Here we have six most spectacular, head catching pieces of melodic, disjointed bass pumping tracks. Acidic, chaotic and pulsating with circular motion.
Track one (“USER MEMORIA”) as one reviewer says on the Bandcamp page ‘Bought after listening to the 1st track as, that on its own, is worth the price’ begins with quite a gentle riff of something not dissimilar to an early μ-Ziq or Autechre track. Something reminiscent of those early playful tones from the beginnings of IDM, so I’m taken by surprise when out of nowhere slams in a break and chaotic baseline knocking me right out my previous, more gentler thoughts. With the twists and turns, this would be the music that I would have playing for my ghost train.
“OVERLAY” begins abruptly with overdriven synths sounding somewhat nightmarish and delirious. Then the sweeping pads slowly phase in leaving the chaos just out of earshot, like the transgression of being lifted into the air. With the pandemonium on the floor I am treated to a new view of the fair. This is my big wheel ride.
“BLOOM MTLS” is short and experimental. I’d liken this to my brief time spent on the slots. Putting my spare change in the machines, pulling the handle and losing each time.
After a losing streak it’s time to head for the Waltzers. “METASPRIES” is certainly the music that is played here. What starts off fast, pulsating and exciting soon lowers its ambitions and sort of fizzles out. At the end it has somehow managed to sound quite nauseous. Now, I’m in no way bad mouthing this record. I’m beginning to wonder if it is indeed about an experience at the funfair.
The closing track (“MI TWEED”) treats us to a little over eight minutes of something more reflective and sobering. What began with focus and drive, proceeding to perturbation with temporary relief, ends with something to think about on the journey home.
Now I’m half tempted to burn this to CD and hand it over to the fairground manager.
Distants is available on Schematic. [Bandcamp]
