A clinical demonstration of how dark, intense and subtly clever soundscapes can be put to work in the context of a fully DJ/club friendly context.
Following his recent full length album release on German label Ad Noiseam, Mobthrow – real name Angelos Liaros – unleashes this beast of a vinyl 12” on Mindtrick records. If you heard the album, then you’ll be aware of the devastating effect this Greek producer’s sound has. His production is as heavy as you can get, mercilessly assaulting mind and body with a wall of sound that is so dense as to be almost tangible. This is not just a case of layering a multitude of sounds on top of each other, but rather an extremely skilfully constructed style of sonic architecture, with each element carefully chosen and placed so as to inflict maximum damage. Liaros is a mastering engineer when he is not wearing his producer cap, and the skill evident in his productions are clearly influenced by an intimate knowledge of how audio frequencies work with each other to produce a sound so efficiently thick, you can feel the weight of the bass physically trying to crush you into the ground. This recent 12” EP shows that the Mobthrow sound has lost none of its power and intensity, if anything, it’s been stepped up a level. The BPM is a bit higher (then the album), giving the record a grimy underground DJ appeal, energy levels have increased and this could be the record to shut down a club full of bass-head ravers for the DJ brave enough to spin this black disk of fury!
The opener is the title track “Pitch Black,” and is the slowest track on the EP, starting with an ambiguous rhythmic intro and ominous sound design creeping in through the back door, the bass soon kicks in with an understated throb and the drums pick up with the trademark heaviness slicing through the mix to deliver the punches direct to your eardrums (or midriff). The track winds its way through sinister swellings of intense sound as elements are slowly developed and added, building unnervingly to the break followed by a subtle drop back into the full eerie denseness of the main body of the track. This is perhaps the track that is most similar to the material on his Ad Noiseam release, having a fairly slow tempo and concentrating on pure quality of sound design and arrangement to deliver its kick.
The second track, “Flashback,” ventures a little more into the realm of dubstep, albeit a very dark variety, with a half speed 140 BPM tempo (or thereabouts), weird vocal samples (taken from Twin Peaks I believe), drums that kick through the mix and a heavy wobble bass. Not the kind of wobble bass that is predictable and generic though, more akin to the filthstep type of bass, distorted with plenty of mid in the mix to really mess with your body when the LFO kicks in on the filters. This track is a banger, slow but with heaps of danceable energy and I can only imagine what it would do to you on a big venue sound system.
Next up is a remix of “Flashback” by one of the dark masters of sonic engineering, Hecq. This guy is one of my favorite producers, sharing many of the qualities that are so endearing about Mobthrow, as well as a spot on the Ad Noiseam roster. This reworking takes the track to another level of intensity as Hecq goes to work with all guns blazing. Choral samples introduce the track in such a way as to leave you in no doubt as to the impending onslaught. When it drops, it’s quite minimal, being mainly a bass and drum affair, but this is not to say empty. The underlying soundscape is truly unsettling, all the more so for being a bit understated.
The heavy artillery are wheeled out for the final track. “Enter Dubcore” is a faster track, flirting in equal measure with Drum And Bass and Dubstep like a beautiful femme fatale assassin sent in to break down defences with cunning charm and then dispatch all in a gory bloodbath, with specific instructions to leave no survivors. I can see this track being played in an underground club at 4 a.m. and wreaking absolute and total devastation. Driving beats and sinister metallic swells that build the track up to a frenzy of bass heavy lunacy that will have the kiddies on the dance floor going out of their minds. This one is my favourite of the bunch, the way it manages to combine doom laden soundscapes with devastating bass lines and thumping drums is sublime.
That, in essence is what this EP is all about. A clinical demonstration of how dark, intense and subtly clever soundscapes can be put to work in the context of a fully DJ/club friendly context. In that respect, this EP is reminiscent of Enduser in the way it approaches handling intricate and immense sound design in a fully danceable way. It’s a different take on a similar subject, but if you have ever marveled at the sheer power and scale of an Enduser track, then you should get acquainted with Mobthrow, although chances are you probably already have. By the same token, fans of Hecq will appreciate this too. It’s all about massive sounds that are constructed with the skill of a master craftsman that will leave you a shaking and dribbling wreck.
Pitch Black is out now on Mindtrick.
MTR008 Mobthrow – Pitch Black EP 12” Promo mix feat. Hecq (Out on Sept 5th) by Mindtrick Records
